Forbidden Love
by toledo girl
Summary: Just when Usagi and Mamoru think that their relationship is perfect, something that could destroy it occurs. During hard times they both have to find out how strong their love truly is for each other.
1. Chapter 1

1

Usagi Tsukino was now seventeen years old as Mamoru walked her through the park. It was fall and the different colored leaves still hung on the limbs of the trees. The setting sun cast a warm glow on each of their faces. Usagi looked up and smiled at him. He returned the smile.

They had both been quiet the entire time, but Mamoru was trying to plan something. He had two weeks until Usagi's birthday. Back at home on his dresser sat a small box with an engagement ring inside of it. He wanted to propose to her on her birthday. That was his gift for her and he was trying to think of the perfect way to give it to her.

"Mamoru! I've got to get home or else mother will be mad at me for being late to dinner," she said bring Mamoru back from his thoughts.

"Then I'll walk you home," he said and then kissed her. He pulled back and saw the smile on her face. Now he knew that proposing was the right thing. He wrapped his arm around her shoulders and they picked up their pace as they headed for her house.

Usagi just kept thinking about the past year. Everything had been quiet since her battle with the Princess Galaxia. There had been a few incidents here and there, but nothing that actually disrupted their lives. She had also noticed that she and Mamoru were spending all their free time together. She would still do things with her friends, but Mamoru usually came along.

"Here we are," Mamoru said stopping in front of her house.

"Would you like to come in and join us for dinner?" Usagi eagerly asked.

"I can't. I have some errands to run, but I'll see you tomorrow," he said. They kissed and then went their separate ways. Usagi just stared with affection as she watched him walk away. She had never felt that way about any one else and loved it. Sighing, she finally went inside.

"You made it just in time," Ikuko said seeing her daughter come through the front door.

Usagi still had the same affectionate look on her face as she went and sat down at the table. "Usagi, could you try and be serious tonight, we have a guest with us," she said.

Usagi looked up at her. "But I feel great and I want to show it," she protested. Ikuko rolled her eyes. She knew why Usagi was so happy, she just didn't like it. Mamoru was so much older then her. At first she was okay with it because she figured that it was going to be one of those relationships that are just used to experiment with. The ones that only last about a week. Now she was beginning to see how serious she really was about him.

"Is this Usagi-chan?" a young man asked. Usagi looked over and saw him in the door way. He was tall and had brown hair with brown eyes. Nothing really special about him, but he did seem to be interested in her. He walked over and took her hand and kissed it. "I am Hideo Asakawa. It is a pleasure to meet you Usagi-chan," he said.

"Nice to meet you to," she said while apprehensively studying him.

"I hope that I can make you the happiest person on earth someday," he said. That was when something went off. Usagi looked over at her mom who had her back t o her as she finished dinner. Ikuko knew that Usagi was waiting for an answer, but hated to explain.

"Hideo, may we have a moment alone?" she asked. Hideo politely left the room. Ikuko slowly turned around and saw the look of nervousness on her daughter. "I guess I better just come right out and tell you," she said with hesitance. "Hideo Asakawa is your future husband."

**I know this is a short chapter, but I wanted to wait until the next one to show Usagi's reaction. This is my fan fic for Sailor Moon, so please tell me what you think.**


	2. Chapter 2

2

Usagi just stared at her mother with her big blue eyes. She couldn't believe what she was hearing. "My husband!? You picked my husband for me?" she asked.

"Well I'm sorry but with the way you're living so far we felt we had to step in! You're lazy when it comes to school so you obviously need some one who can support you and you've been dating a man who is way older than you! So far you're choices have been some what childish," Ikuko snapped not really wanting to deal with her daughter's whining.

Usagi stood up in protest. "Mamo-chan may be older but that doesn't mean that you can choose who I love!" she argued.

Ikuko gave her daughter a sympathetic look. "Usagi, love is a choice. YOU chose to love Mamoru the way that you do. What you feel for him is lust," she calmly explained. Usagi just shook her head and ran off to her room. "Usagi!" Ikuko snapped. "We've got a guest!"

"Maybe if he chooses to love me he'll understand," Usagi responded from half way down the hall. Ikuko sighed and went back to what she was doing.

Usagi sat on her bed and stared out the window. All her thoughts were focused around Mamoru. How she could bare to even go a day with out being around him, let alone of life time. How she could honestly tell another man that she loved him. How this might change her destiny. If they never get married, then Chibiusa would never exist, then the entire royal family would be changed. No that it really matter, she would have to be Neo-Queen no matter what happened and she would still have a daughter, but it wouldn't be the same little chibiusa that lived with her for a while. The same one that she loved no matter how annoying she got. And most of all, it wouldn't be Mamoru's. A tear ran down her cheek as she continued to just stare. Everything they had been through now all meant nothing.

"Mamo-chan," she whispered to herself. Usagi leaned over and grabbed her pillow. She hugged it tightly and then cried into it.

Mamoru sat in his apartment as he stared at the engagement ring. "Three weeks from now. That's all we have to wait for," he said to himself as he smiled.

Luna walked in and saw Usagi throwing items into an opened suitcase on her bed. "May I ask what you are doing?" she asked.

"I'm packing," Usagi answered without even turning around. Luna jumped up onto the bed and stood before the suitcase. "You know how upset you're parents will be with you?" she asked.

"Luna! The destiny of the universe is at stake! How could you even bring up my parents right now?" she asked.

"Why? What happened?" she asked.

"They arranged my marriage," she answered with bitterness.

"You know that that won't change the fact that you still have to take the throne," Luna said. Luna knew how Usagi and Mamoru felt about each other and hated to see them separated, but, she had to look out for her. What was a seventeen year old girl going to do to take care of herself out on the streets? Well, there was a couple of answeres, but she was hoping that Usagi had not come to those yet.

"Can't you just prolong the wedding date until you are able to make the legal decisions on your own?" Luna asked. Usagi looked over and sighed.

"I have a feeling that they have the date set before that happens," she said with sadness in her eyes as she looked to Luna with despair. Usagi looked over her items and then sighed as she closed the suitcase. "Do you want to come with me or not?" she asked. Luna nodded. She figured that if she couldn't get her to follow the rules, that she could at least protect her.

**Again, another short chapter, I'm sorry, they will get longer sooner or later. I hope you enjoyed it and please tell me what you think about it.**


	3. Chapter 3

Usagi walked down the dark sidewalk with a suitcase in her hand and Luna by her side. She knew exactly where she was going and there was no surprise, she was going to Mamoru. She knew that they had to wait until she was twenty before they did anything, but anything was better than getting married to a stranger that you don't love.

"Luna, be honest, do you think this will work out?" Usagi asked sounding unsure of herself.

Luna looked up at her. She did think that it was a good idea. She had to. The future of the universe some what depended on it. She wasn't quite sure if the person she married had anything to do with it, but she did know that they belonged together. It was meant to be.

"If you two were married in the future you have to find a way to get around your parent's wishes," Luna said reassuring her.

Usagi looked down and watched her for a second. There was a look of concern on her face. "Would you have done the same thing if you were told that you couldn't be with Artemis?" she asked.

Luna just looked up at her. The idea had never even entered her mind. To her, everything was supposed to happen the way it was happening. She could remember the future and how it was, well, at least most of it. Diana proved to her that she couldn't remember everything. It never actually occurred to her that the little details of the future were subject to change. If Artemis were to get stolen or ill and couldn't go on with her, there would be no them, there would also be no Diana.

"In this situation? Yes," she said.

Usagi laughed at her. "Would Luna actually break the rules for love?" she asked.

"What use is it to be proud of yourself if there is no one to share with it?" she asked.

Usagi stopped as she came to the building. Suddenly there was a lump in her throat. She had to tell the love of her life that they could be torn apart if they didn't do something. They would possibly have to runaway. Then she wouldn't have Ami, Rei, Minako, or Mikoto. They would all have to stay behind in Tokyo. With the little confidence she had in herself at the moment, she walked into the building and made her way up to his apartment. She got to the door and hesitated to knock. The situation wasn't her fault, but for some reason she had the idea that he might get mad at her. Of course, she was nervous and was tending to think the worst of everything at the moment

"Mamo?" she asked as she finally put her suitcase down and knocked on the door. There was a pause as she waited. Mamoru sat inside staring at the ring that he had bought for her. Once he heard her voice he quickly got up and hid the ring in one of the table doors and rushed over to the door. Standing on the other side was a tear stricken Usagi. Her blue eyes full of pain and betrayal.

"Usako? What's wrong?" he asked with concern. He glanced down at the suitcase, but didn't want to say anything until she explained.

"Oh Mamoru," she said through soft sobs.

"Come here," he said taking her into his arms. He could feel her body shake as she cried into his chest. He led her to the couch and then got up to go get her suitcase for her and closed the door after he let Luna come in. It was very apparent that he was uneasy looking down at the suitcase, but did not want to upset Usagi even more than she was.

"I've got something to tell you," Usagi said as she looked up at him.

He just gave her a look of concern that made her feel better. It made her feel like there was some one that was willing to listen. Some one that wasn't going to completely run her life for her.

"What is it?" he asked.

"My parents arranged my marriage between me and this other man," Usagi explained. Her head dropped down and she then started to cry even more. "How could I love some one if I don't even remember their name?" she cried out.

Mamoru just stared at her. He couldn't believe what he had just heard. This morning he planned on proposing, now he's learning that she might already be engaged. "So I take it you want to stay here for a while," he said.

Usagi looked up at him and nodded. "If that's okay with you," she said hoping that he would say yes so that she wouldn't have to go back home and face any of them.

Deep down he wanted her to stay. He wanted her to live with him forever. He just didn't know what that would do to how others saw her. Then again, right now she didn't seem to care about that.

"It is," he said. "Just let me go get a few things for dinner tonight," he said as he grabbed his coat. He started out the door and then turned back to Usagi. "Do you want to join me?" he asked.

"No, I think I'll just stay here," she absently answered. He nodded and then left.

Mamoru decided that he would go out and plan something special for the next day. It was only right that he give her tonight to get over what had just happened at her house. He figured that maybe he could propose to her sooner. Start their life together before her parents get too involved. There was a lot on his mind right now, but that didn't keep him from getting things done.

Usagi decided to get up and write her parents a letter. She wanted to let them know not to look for her. Opening the table door, she gasped. There was a small box in there.

"Mamo," she said as she opened the box and held it up to her face.


	4. Chapter 4

4

Usagi stared at the ring as her eyes sparkled with excitement. Right now she was about to go out and scream at the top of her lungs. Tell every one how lucky she was. Tell them that she would soon be Mrs. Chiba. "Oh Luna!" she squealed. "Come over here! Look! Look!" Usagi now had the excitement of a five year old waking up on Christmas morning to find that they had gotten every single thing they wanted. A school girl getting her first kiss. Winning the gold metal at the Olympics. All the above!

"You really shouldn't be going through his stuff," Luna said as she hopped up onto the table in front of her. She then looked at the ring. "Oh my, that is pretty," she said. The ring was a simple gold band with a diamond in the center and a sapphire on each side of it.

"Hey," Usagi said picking up a piece of folded paper. She opened it up and read out loud. "Usako, this ring has a special meaning. The gold band is simple, yet beautiful in every way. The diamond is pure and can easily hold a special place in anyone's heart, but only one person is lucky enough to get a hold of it. The two sapphires, like the eyes of an angel that sparkle in the light. Happy 18th birthday Usako."

Both Usagi and Luna stared at the paper for a moment. There was a small meaningful smile on her face as her eyes started to water. She then placed everything back to it's original spot and closed the door. She stood back and stared at the table. "Now there is definitely never going to be any chance of me marrying that man back at home," she said to herself.

Mamoru walked into the apartment. He had been gone a couple of hours. Putting the bags down, he found Usagi sleeping on the couch. He closed the door behind him and smiled. She looked like a little girl. Sweet, innocent, and calm. He walked over and covered her up with a blanket and then gently kissed her on the forehead.

Luna sat on the counter in the background as she watched. It made her want to go see Artemis. There was an underlying jealousy to the entire thing. Then again, she had just seen one of the sweetest love letters.

The next morning Usagi awoke to the smell of bacon. She slowly lifted her head up from the pillow and looked over at Mamoru. He was cooking for her, he made sure that she was warm. She had just realized that he had taken her in. He was now taking care of her, and she loved it. "Good morning," she said.

Mamoru turned around. "Good morning. I'm surprised at you," he said.

"What?" Usagi asked.

"You made it through the night without dinner," he said. Usagi looked offended for a second but then playfully grabbed the pillow and threw it at him. "Okay, if that's how it goes," he said. Mamoru walked over and started to tickle her belly and sides.

"Mamo-chan!" she squealed as he was kneeling above her body. "Stop it!" cried out while laughing.

"Why?" he asked. Usagi started to turn to her side which caused them to both go over the side of the couch. "You okay?" he asked as he sat up.

Usagi sat up and slightly smiled as she stared into eyes. He could see a hint of longing. "I'm okay," she replied as she leaned over and locked her lips with his. He lifted his hand and gently cupped the back of her head. She wrapped her arms around him. The sun shone through putting a soft, warm light on the two as they kissed. Neither of them wanted to let go of each other. Right there and then, it was perfect. Some how it had seemed as if every trouble or worry had just vanished. That all they needed was right there in each other.

There was a knock at the door that caused them to slowly separate. "Could you get that while I go make sure that our breakfast doesn't burn?" he asked seeming to be over come by a feeling of lust.

"Yes," she answered with a similar tone and then slowly got up and watched him as he made his way to the stove. She loved him. That love wasn't chosen, it was a true feeling for each other. Not one forced upon them. Usgai slowly opened the door.

"Mom? Dad?" she gasped seeing who was on the other side of the door.

"Usagi! What are you doing in a boy's apartment?" Kenji yelled.

Usagi slowly back up. The next thing she knew, she found herself pressed up against Mamoru with his hands on her shoulders.

"I thought I made it clear who you were with now," Ikuko said.

Usagi stood back in Mamoru's hands. The thought of going back with her parents to the man that they chose for her to love made her cringe. Her future was in her hands, but that was slowly beginning to change.

"Mrs. Tsukino, with all do respect, doesn't Usako get a choice in who she loves?" Mamoru asked.

"Now see here," Kenji started.

Usagi just stood there as she focused her attention on the table where she had earlier found the ring. It wasn't even the ring that mattered. What mattered was what he said. What he had intended to do. Now he was standing up to her parents for her. This was beginning to become too much. She was Sailor Moon, champion of love and justice. How could a soldier of the moon just stand there and let her boyfriend argue with her parents for her? "Mom," she called out quietly but sternly as she raised her head. The room became silent. "It's my life and I choose to stay here," she said and then looked up at Mamoru. "Here with the man I truly love, not the one chosen because he has a good job," she said and then looked back at her parents.

"You know you don't to make that decision until you are twenty, and not a second sooner," Ikuko coldly stated.

"Now get your things and come on home," Kenji ordered.

Usagi pulled away from Mamoru's hold and glared at the two. She had never felt like she did now. She had just been betrayed by her own parents. "I'll grab my things, but there is no way that I am coming home with you two," she said and then grabbed her suitcase.

"Usagi!" Ikuko snapped.

Usagi got the door way where they were standing and stopped for a second. She looked her Ikuko straight in the eye. "You may think that choosing my husband is the right thing to do, but I know that you and Daddy chose each other," Usagi said and then walked past them out of the apartment.

"Usagi Samara Tsukino! Get back here!" Ikuko yelled.

Usagi ignored her. She ignored her parents for the entire way through the hallway. She had made it half way down the road when it had started to rain. She was getting wet and it was starting to get cold, but she didn't care. For the first time in her life, she just didn't care how she felt, or that she had no where to go. If she went to her friend's houses, her parents would find her, and there was no way that she could just show up at a stranger's house.

Usagi came to a bridge and sat down underneath it. She had looked around and noticed that Luna wasn't with her. She was all alone in the rain. There was a streak of lightning and a crash of thunder that made her jump. Curling herself up against the wall, she cried. If there was one thing that scared her, it was thunder, and now she was out in the middle of one with no one else around. "This was not what I wanted," she said to herself.

Gathering her composer, as if it really matter, she looked out over at the other people. Even in rain, the little street lined with shops was still busy. There was another loud crash of thunder that this time caused her to scream.

"Hey, it's okay,"

Usagi turned and saw Mamoru sitting down next to her. "How, how," she tried to ask.

"This was where you came the last few times you were upset and I knew that this time instead of being on the bridge that you would be hiding," he said.

The two sat there during the storm. He knew that she didn't want to go any where, so he just stayed there with her. She snuggled up against him as he wrapped his arms around her. Holding her closer anf tighter each time there was a crash of thunder.


	5. Chapter 5

5

Luna and Artemis lay cuddled up together in Minako's room as they waited for the storm to end. "I jope Usagi and Mamoru are okay," Luna said.

"Why wouldn't they be?" Artemis asked as he lifted his head up.

"On my way over here I thought that I had spotted Usagi's parent's looking for her," Luna said. She had already told him the entire story when she had first arrived there. She had every intention of going back to Mamoru's apartment, but had decided to wait until after the rain.

"I think maybe I should have just went back, that way I would know what's going on," Luna said.

Minako walked into the room and saw the two cats on a cushion by the window. She found it cute when ever those two were together. "Hey Luna, when did you get here?" she asked.

"Right before the rain started," she answered.

Minako went over to her dresser and started to look for something. "By any chance, could you tell me where Usagi's been? I tried calling a few times and the first couple her mom answered and told me that she went out and now no one's answering," Minako said. "I'm just afraid that something bad happened."

Luna looked up at her. She didn't want to start telling every one what had happened with Usagi, but this was different. At least, the way she saw it, it was different. A worried friend, probably just wants to help. "She's been at Mamoru's" Luna said.

Minako looked up from her dresser and slowly turned towards Luna and gave her a look of confusion. She knew that they were dating, she just didn't know that Usagi would do that. "With Mamoru?" she asked.

"They slept in separate rooms," Luna said defending Usagi.

"What did she do? Just fall asleep there while on a date?" Minako asked while starting to laugh. She had known Usagi for a couple of years, and her falling asleep at the wrong time sounded a lot like her.

"Actually maybe you can help," Luna said. She got off the pillow and walked over to the dresser. "She ran away from home," Luna explained.

"Why?" Minako asked.

"Her parents found some one for her to marry. Maybe you can just find her a place to stay so that she's not trying to stay out on the streets," Luna said.

Minako hated to hear what was going on. She believed that true love could never be interfered with. "They really did that?" she asked.

Luna nodded.

"Is she still over at Mamoru's?" she asked.

"I don't know, I saw her parents walking over there. I think she's probably left by now," Luna said.

Usagi fell asleep in the arms of Mamoru. He smiled down at her. She belonged to him, and he belonged to her, and that was how he liked it and hoped that that was the way she liked it. If she didn't, he was willing to let her go in a heart beat if it meant her happiness. He was wasn't willing to let her go on the command of her parents.

"Mamo-chan?" she asked as she poked her head up.

"Yes?" he asked.

"Is the storm over?" she asked. He nodded his head and then looked out towards the other side of the park. There was still a light drizzle, but nothing to get excited over. The thunder and lightning had quit a while ago, he just decided to let her sleep in his arms. He enjoyed it and didn't want it to end.

Usagi sat up and kissed him. Sitting back, she smiled at him. It was like her way of saying thank you to him. "Now what?" she asked.

There was a trusting in her eyes that made him feel guilty about the situation. "Honestly, I don't know," he said.

She stared up at him as her eyes filled with worry. He leaned over and grabbed her shoulders. "We'll be okay, I promise," he said.

Usagi smiled at him. She trusted that he was going to find them a place to stay. Mamoru looked around and then stood up. "Come on Usako, it's only drizzling, we had better find a place to get settled in by dinner time," he said. Mamoru extended his hand and helped her to her feet. Hand and hand, they walked out from under the bridge and over to the edge of the park.

Usagi smiled as she looked over at the play ground. "Mamo-chan?" she asked as she stopped.

"What?" he asked turning to her.

"Look over there? Anything familiar to you?" she asked.

"It's a playground," he said.

She looked up to him with her big blue begging eyes. They were full of a child like innocence. "You want to? It's been a while," she said.

"We need to find a place for tonight. I mean, we can't go back to my apartment with your parents there," he said.

"Please?" she asked.

Mamoru smiled. "Well, alright. Just on one condition though," he said.

"What?" she asked willing to do just about anything.

"Last one there's a rotten egg," he said as he took off running. He figured that the next month or so was going to be rough, so why not let her have fun now?

Usagi's eyes lit up with delight at his behavior. "Hey! That's not fair! You got a head start!" she yelled as she ran towards him.

"You're telling me that Sailor Moon, a soldier, can't keep up with me?" he asked as she approached him.

"You telling me that little miss turtle herself should beat you?" she jokingly asked as she grabbed at his coat.

"Well, I can fix that," he said as he picked her up, causing her to squeal.

"Mamoru!" she squealed. He carried her over to the swing set and sat her down on one of the swings.

"There, now I won't have to wait for you," he said. Usagi just laughed as she started to push herself. Usually, she would have been offended, but, there was nothing that could ruin this moment for her. Even if a youma came, it would only cause them to look out for each other and get closer to each other, if that was possible.

Usagi could feel his gentle hands push her on the swing. She felt like a little girl again.

"You know, I love this part of you," he said. Usagi questionably looked back at him. "The part that will always remain a little girl at heart," he said.

Usagi smiled. He loved her for who she was, and that was all that counted to her.

"Remember the day when we both found out about each other? The day you found out I was Tuxedo Kaman?" he asked.

"Of course I do," she said.

"Well, do you remember what I told you?" he asked.

"About your parents?" she asked. He slightly laughed. There were some parts of her that were never going to change.

"No, when you ran into me," he said just trying to give her a hint.

(_Usagi went up and jokingly punched him in the back of his shoulder. Mamoru winced. He then turned around and smiled. "Usako, you're very energetic, stay that way._)

"Yes," she said blankly staring off as the memory kept playing over and over in her head. Usagi put her feet down and stopped the swing. Getting up, she turned around and looked to Mamoru with loving eyes. Walking around the swing, she smiled at him. "Yes I do. You told me that I was energetic and that I should stay that way," she said wrapping her arms around him.

"That being around three years ago, there's no doubt that you have matured. Both as Sailor Moon and Usagi Tsukino," he said. He wrapped his arms around her and smiled down at her. "There are a lot of times that I am glad you have matured," he said causing Sailor Moon to give him a frown that could easily be identified as fake. "But then there are times that that same little Usako shows through and I realize just how much I love that part of you too," he said.

"Mamo-chan," she said and then stood up on her tip toes and kissed him. He returned the kiss as the rain fell down around them.

"Well," he said once they had finally let go. "Let's go find us a place to stay," he said. Usagi nodded and went to grab her suitcase. They were off to find more then just a place, along with it came a new life.

**Sorry for the wait on this chapter, I had exams to finish up right after Christmas break so I was pretty busy. Anyways, I was also having some writer's block with this, so please tell me what you thought. I hope you enjoyed it. **


	6. Chapter 6

6

Mamoru and Usagi walked down the street. The rain had stopped and now the sun was beginning to come back out. Even though it had only been a couple of days, they had been through a lot. The only reason that they went through it, was for each other. That was the only reason that they did a lot of things. It was hard fro Mamoru to explain to her, but that was the reason that he had broken up with her in the first place a few years back.

"Usagi-chan!"

Usagi and Mamoru stopped and turned around. Minako ran towards them. Her voice seemed to be full of worry.

"Something wrong?" Usagi asked.

Minako reached them and stopped to catch her breath. "I heard," she said. Mamoru and Usagi exchanged looks. They both were unsure of what to think about what she had just said.

"About what?" Mamoru asked turning his head to her.

"I heard about your mom," she said with sympathy in her eyes.

"How did you know?" Usagi asked.

"Luna came over and explained to me why you haven't been answering the phone," she explained.

"Oh," Usagi absently answered as she stared out into space. She really didn't want for the others to know about what was going on, but then again, they were bound to find out sooner or later.

"Hey," Minako said grabbing her shoulders. "I'm on your side! All I want to do is help," she said.

Usagi looked up and smiled. "Really?" she asked.

"Since when wouldn't I when it came to true love?" Minako asked.

Mamoru sighed as he looked off into the distance. He knew that every one would want to help, he just wasn't sure if there could be anything done by anyone to help them. They had to learn to live out on their own now. He could live on his own, but he didn't know if he could support Usagi, or if he could even find a new place for them to live together.

"If you want, my parents are out of town until Wednesday. You can stay at my house for a few days to figure out what you're going to do," Minako offered.

Usagi wanted to do that, but she didn't know whether or not Mamoru was about to accept help from others.

"Okay, just until your parents get back," Mamoru said. Usagi looked up to him with surprise. She had never expected him to accept help from any one right now.

They followed Minako back to her house. The entire time Usagi wondered what they were really about to do. Wouldn't moving in together mean that she would have to marry him? She wasn't even old enough to live on her own let alone get married.

"Here, you two can stay in my parent's room if you want," Minako said.

"Together?" Usagi asked.

Minako looked back at them. "I'm sure that you two will be either too tired or too stressed or both to do anything. Besides, we all know how this turns out," Minako said.

Usagi stared at her as she walked out of the room. Did they really? Did anyone really know what was going to happen? The future is always subject to change. There is never anything that is definite and nothing for sure. "I hope she's right," Usagi said to herself.

Mamoru looked down at her and tried to give her a reassuring smile as he laid his hand on her shoulder. "I know she is," he said.

That night, Usagi sat on the ground as she rested her head on the window sill. The full moon illuminated the black sky. The neighborhood was quiet around her. Suddenly, her eyes started to sparkle like the stars in the sky as they filled with water.

"I'm going apartment hunting tomorrow if you want to come and join me. I think you should, you're going to be living there to," Mamoru said as he walked into the room.

"Alright," she answered with out turning around. Her voice was shaky and the tears were ready to fall, but she couldn't let Mamoru see that. Not right now. The last thing that she wanted him to think was that she was doubting him. In reality, she was doubting herself.

"Usako?" he asked as he slowly made his way over to her. "Something wrong?" he asked kneeling down beside her. Usagi looked up at him. Her tear streaked face caused his heart to brake. "Usako?" he asked once more.

"I'm scared," she said as she faintly shook her head.

"Of what?" he asked.

Usagi turned and stared out the window. "Do you really think that this is going to work?" she asked.

Mamoru, now feeling slightly betrayed, sat back and stared at her. He was awaiting the answer, but he knew that it couldn't be good.

Usagi looked into his eyes. "I love you. I love you more than I ever thought I could love some one, and I hope that you know that I do trust you. It's just…" she said and then looked back out the window.

"Just what?" he asked gently wiping her tears away with his thumb.

Usagi grabbed his hand and lowered her head. "I don't trust me. I mean, I have sacrificed my life for you at times and I know you've done the same for me many times, but I can't put you through what we're about to go through," she said.

"You're not putting me through anything that I'm not ready for," he said.

Usagi looked up at him. "What are we going to do? Just keep moving from one apartment to the next? You know that my parents will find us! What happens if you have to switch jobs? Eventually we'll just have to leave the country! Then what? I'm not old enough to leave the country with out my parents!" Usagi said as if she were getting ready to yell.

Mamoru just sat back and thought about what she had said. There was nothing to say to it.

"Maybe there's just nothing to do now," she said.

"You can't be saying that…" he started.

"Saying what?" she asked looking directly into his eyes. "That it's over?" she asked.

There was a look of pain written all over his face as he looked down.

"Never," she said causing Mamoru to raise his head and look to her with interest. "All that I'm saying is that there's got to be a better way of doing this."

"The only thing that I can think of would be to just wait," he said.

Usagi smiled. "I might go back to my parents and I might humor them by going out with this Hideo guy, but I will never give up on us," she announced.

Usagi and Mamoru exchanged bittersweet smiles. Usagi was going to go back home. She knew that she was going to be forced together with Hideo, but there was no other choice at the moment. She could still sneak around with Mamoru, but it wouldn't be the same. If it was going to do anything, it would test their relationship.


	7. Chapter 7

7

Minako stepped into the room to see if the two were ready for breakfast. The door cracked open revealing Usagi asleep in Mamoru's arms. She lightly smiled and then turned back to walk into the kitchen. In the hallway, she passed Luna and Artemis cuddling together on a pillow. "Even my own pet is better with relationships than I am," she said and then entered the kitchen.

Usagi heard the door close and woke up. She was happy opening her eyes to the face of the man she loves. "It's not over by a long shot," she said as she watched him sleep. Even now, it still reminded her of a little boy. Not wanting to wake him, she just stayed there. Besides, there was nothing to motivate her. The sooner she got out of bed the sooner she would have to go and face her parents. The more she looked at his calm, gentle face, the more she thought that she should rethink her plans.

"Usako?" Mamoru asked trying to wake up.

"Yes?" she asked.

He smiled and then sat up. "How long have you been up?" he asked.

Usagi sat up and shrugged. "Just before you got up," she said. She then stared down towards the bed sheet. There was a lot on her mind. Everything was so confusing to her.

"Still upset over the same thing?" he asked putting his arm around her.

"I don't think I should go any more," she said with out looking up.

Mamoru didn't know how to answer that. Instead of speaking, he pulled her closer and began rubbing her shoulder.

"What do you think?" Usagi asked as she pulled away and looked up at his face. Her eyes showing every bit of her uncertainty.

"I think you'll know what's right. If you think you need to go deal with your parents, then I'll be right there, and if you don't want to go, I'll still be right there," he said.

Usagi smiled at him. That was his way of saying that he's not going to leave her. They stared into each other's eyes and then leaned in to each other. He pressed his lips against hers. She started to cry as she thought back on the time that she had to fight Queen Beryl and he was her side.

_Sailor Moon sat kneeling on the ground as Endymion looked to her with anger. He was about to kill her. To finish her off. She pulled her locket out and held it up to him. With a hopeful smile, she raised it. "Remember Mamoru?" she asked. He then reached down and gently touched the rim. _

"I lost you before, I'm not losing you again," she whispered.

"What?" he asked backing up.

"When you were taken by Queen Beryl and then brainwashed. Remember? Remember when we were enemies?" she asked.

He thought for a moment. He could only remember seeing Princess Serenity and then waking up to her kneeling over him. He couldn't remember battling against her.

"No," he said guilt stricken as he looked down.

"That's okay," she said and then sighed. There was another time that she knew he would remember. "Then remember when you broke up with me? Remember the horrible dreams that we were both hearing?" she asked.

He did. He hated it, but he remembered it all too well. "Yes," he said sounding distant.

Usagi looked down and thought for a moment and then looked up and smiled at him. She leaned over and grabbed a piece of paper and a red pen from the table next to the bed. She then scribbled something on it, wadded it up, and threw it at him. It hit Mamoru's head. He looked up at her with confusion and then took the paper and straightened it out. Laughing, he turned to her. "Thirty percent. Who could forget?" he asked.

"I was hoping that you would remember that day," she said.

"It doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure out which test scores belonged to you," he said laughing at her.

"That's not funny!" she said and then threw the pillow at him. Mamoru caught the pillow and then threw it back at her. She screamed as she fell back and hit the floor.

"Usako!" he exclaimed as he scrambled to join her on the floor. "Usako!" he repeated as he saw her lying there unconscious. He then grabbed her shoulder and tried to wake her. Suddenly a smug grin spread across her face as she slowly opened her eyes. "Had you worried didn't I?" she asked.

"Now that's not funny!" he scolded. Usagi just laughed as she stared up at him. He was still kneeling over her on the floor. She wrapped her arms around his neck. "You still love me?" she asked.

He smirked down at her. "Yes," he said leaning down and kissing her.

Rei sat in front of the fire. The flames cast an orange glow on her face. Concentrating, she chanted.

_The Neo Queen Serenity stood in what looked like the ruins of an old city. It was dark and gloomy. The breeze swept her long her off the ground. She looked a head with despair and sadness. Opposite of her stood King Endymion. The same look on his face. They kept their distance from each other but, still had some kind of longing for each other. The Neo Queen held a sword in her hand that fell to the ground as tears started to fall from her eyes. Endymion then held his up and turned to walk away from her. As he walked away, he looked back at her. Trying to gather herself, Serenity reached down and picked her sword back up. She waited for him to be out of her eyes and then turned to walk away. _

Rei's eyes snapped open as she jumped back. Her face was now full of worry. "Usagi-chan, Mamo-chan," gasped.

**Here it is, my first actual cliff hanger. What do you think Rei's vision means? Thank you to those who have been reviewing, and as always, tell me what you thought. **


	8. Chapter 8

8

Mamoru walked Usagi over to her house. There was a lot on her mind, and she just had to talk with her parents. She knew that they weren't bad people, that there was just something they felt strongly about. She didn't know why, but she was about to find out.

They got to the house. With hesitation, Usagi took his arm from around her shoulders and held onto his hand. She looked up into his eyes as they started to rim with unshed tears.

"Don't worry, I'll be right out here waiting for you," he said.

Usagi nodded. She gave his hand one final squeeze and then entered the house. It was quiet, more so than usual. She continued into the den where she found her family sitting. "Mom? Dad?" she asked trying to keep her voice steady. They both turned and smiled as they went over to her. Ikuko took her into an embrace and then Kenji did the same. It was clear that they had missed her.

"Welcome home," Ikuko said.

Usagi looked up with guilt. "I'm sorry, it's just that when I was told that I had to get married to some one, I couldn't do it. I can't force myself to love some one," Usagi said.

Ikuko looked to Kenji and motioned for him to give them a moment. He walked out of the room and left Usagi and Ikuko to talk on the couch. Ikuko looked down and sighed. She then looked up at Usagi who was eager to hear what she had to say. "Usagi," she started. She hated being in this situation, but it had to be done.

"What is it mother?" she asked getting impatient.

"The thing about the marriage to Hideo. It still stands," she said looking down.

"What?" she asked trying her hardest to hold back tears.

"You have to understand, that's how my family has worked for many many generations. When your father and I met, yes we fell in love, but that was just coincidence that my father chose him to be my husband. That's how my parents got married, and their parents, and then their parents. That's the tradition in this family. You can't just lose that many years of tradition over a relationship that neither of us approves," Ikuko said.

Usagi stared off to the side. There was no way that she could be hearing that. She and Mamoru had gone through way too much to have it split apart like they were trying to do.

"Why do you hate Mamoru?" she asked starting to cry.

"I don't hate him. And neither does your father. It's just that you two are six years apart, you barely knew anything about each other when you started dating, which is horrible when you're with some one so much older. It was never responsible," Ikuko said.

"I brought him home to you. There were no secrets," Usagi argued.

Ikuko just sighed. "You're right, but that still doesn't change my mind. I'm sorry if you don't like it, but that's just the way that it goes," she explained.

Usagi looked down and wiped a tear that had started to trickle down her cheek. "Alright," she said and then stood up. "If that's how you really feel. Tell Shingo that I'll see him some other time." Usagi walked out of the house, her face covered by tears. Her eyes red and puffy. Closing the door behind her, she looked down at Mamoru who was looking to her with sympathy. Shaking her head, she fell to her knees. Mamoru ran up to her and sat down beside her. He took her in his arms and did his best to comfort her. Usagi lifted her head and looked up into his eyes. Suddenly, she wrapped her arms around him. "No matter what they say, I'll only love you," she said. "They can't make me love some one else," she said.

A familiar face roamed about in a darkened space. She wondered over to the front of what seemed to be a dark palace of some sort.

"It feels so good to be back here," she said ominously as her eyes glared across the room with an evil smile pasted on her face.

**Alright, maybe the bottom part may not make sense yet, but it will later on. As usual, tell me what you think and thank you to those who have been reviewing. **


	9. Chapter 9

9

Usagi lay awake in bed. It was the middle of the night and every thing was calm. All she could do was stare out the window and evaluate her relationship with Mamoru. How far they've both come, and how much they have both been through together. They were able to get through the rough times. She was just hoping that they would stay together no matter what her parents did.

They were back at Mamoru's apartment. Sure, her parents knew, but what were they going to do about it? They both knew that she was going to run away.

"Usagi-chan."

Usagi looked down and saw Luna sitting on the ground. "What is it?" she asked.

"I need to talk to you. Come out to the living room with me," she said and then walked away. Usagi wanted to protest, but she also didn't want to wake Mamoru. She carefully got out of bed and then closed the door behind her as she left the room.

"What is it?" she asked as she went and sat down on the couch.

Luna jumped up and sat down next to her. "You know what your true destiny is," she said. Usagi nodded. "Well, your eighteenth birthday is approaching. That is when you are to take over as Neo Queen Serenity," she said.

Usagi just looked down at her with disbelief. "How? I'm not even an adult yet." she said.

"According to the moon you are," Luna said and then smiled.

Usagi looked around then glared down at Luna. "Luna!" she snapped. "Do you think that I am really ready to do this? I still have to work some things out with my parents and make sure that I marry Mamo-chan," she said.

"Well, that's not my choice to make. It's not yours either," she said.

"What do you mean it's not mine? I'm the queen," Usagi argued.

"According to you you're not," Luna answered.

Usagi sat back and sighed. "Shouldn't I get married before I do that?" she asked.

"You can get married once you've been crowned," Luna said.

Usagi looked over and Luna and stared for a minute. An idea that could solve all her problems had just popped into her head. "Luna, that means that I can marry Mamoru with out a parent's permission," she said. Luna nodded. "Maybe this is the answer I've been looking for," Usagi said.

In a dark palace, a group of people bowed down. A queen had been revived. Queen Beryl. After the defeat with Sailor Moon, she had spent time in a deep sleep. Now, she had been awakened. The Dark Kingdom was about to mark its place in the world once again.

She took her seat and stared out over the crowd. Every one watched with an admiration that excited her. "I'm glad to be back. Now we can finally take back what belongs to us," she announced.

"As you all know, Sailor Moon herself is about to take the throne," she said. "That gives us our chance for ultimate revenge." she said.

Rei shot up from her bed. Her forehead covered in sweat, heart racing. She looked out the window and watched for a minute. "I've got to tell the others," she said to herself.

Usagi came and joined Mamoru at the kitchen table.

"Good morning," he said.

Usagi smiled and sat down. "Morning," she said. She was wanting to tell him about the previous night, but didn't know how he would take it. There was a lot going on at the moment and that would just add more to it. "I had a talk with Luna last night," she said.

"Just don't do that out in public. People may get the wrong idea about you," he said.

Usagi smiled. "Actually, she told me that when I was eighteen, in a few weeks, that I become queen," she said with a small tone of apprehension.

Mamoru looked up at her and began to show her a smile. "You don't sound as happy as you should," he said. Usagi just looked up at him. "Do you realize that once you are queen, you can do what you want, including a marriage that you want."

Usagi returned the smile. "I guess if it was meant to be, it was meant to be," she said and then stared out the window.

"Excuse me, I'll be right back," Mamoru said as he got up. Usagi watched him as he left the room. She felt guilty having an idea of what he was going to get. He finally walked in with an envelope and a small box. "Here," he said standing before her. "Read this first," he said handing her the envelope. She took it and gave him a quick look of affection before she carefully tore the seal.

"Usako, this ring has a special meaning. The gold band is simple, yet beautiful in every way. The diamond is pure and can easily hold a special place in anyone's heart, but only one person is lucky enough to get a hold of it. The two sapphires, like the eyes of an angel that sparkle in the light. Happy 18th birthday Usako," she read with tears forming in her eyes. Even though she had read it before, there was something that was going to make her cry every time that she read it. "Mamo-chan," she gasped as she gave him the same affectionate look from before.

"Now Usako," he said and then got down on his knee. Usagi wiped the tears from her face as she gleamed with joy. Every one had known that this day was coming, but it was still his proposal. "We have obviously known each other for a very long time. Most of the time I spent with you was the best that I've had. The rest when I was hurting you, were the worst times. Knowing that I feel that way about it, I am secure in asking you. Usagi Tsukino, would you marry me?"

Usagi smiled and held out her left hand. "If you were paying attention earlier I think you already know the answer. Yes," she said as she nodded. There were still tears of joy forming in her eyes. Mamoru slid the ring on her finger. It was official, she was going to be the Mrs. Mamoru Chiba.

Mamoru stood up and took Usagi's hands. "Thank you," he said. She smiled as she got to her feet. "I should be the one thanking you," she said and then kissed him.

**Thank you to those who have reviewed, and as always, please tell me what you think. Hope I didn't get too fluffy or anything at the end. **


	10. Chapter 10

10

Rei had every one gathered at the temple. She had to tell them about the visions and dreams that she had been having during the last week. It was worrying her and she needed to hear what the others had to say and get them ready for a possible battle that they may have to fight in.

She had already told the others about her visions and was now awaiting their answers.

"You really think she's coming back?" Mikoto asked.

Rei just nodded as she kept her head down. She then looked up at Usagi. "I think it has to do with you becoming queen," she said.

That was no surprise to any one. Every one knew that she would want her revenge, they just didn't know how soon she was going to take the throne.

"She's probably saving her energy until then," Ami said. "I don't think we have anything to worry about until then."

"We should probably save up our own energy to," Minako said.

Usagi nervously looked around at each of them. "You don't have as long as you think," she announced.

"What?" Mikoto asked.

"I take the throne on my birthday," Usagi stated.

Rei looked up at her. "Does Mamoru-chan know?" she asked. Usagi just nodded. "If you two are going to get married, you have to before you become queen," she warned.

Usagi had never seen Rei like that. It worried her. She now knew that something was terribly wrong. "Why?" she asked.

"I don't know. Just do it," Rei snapped.

Usagi just sat back and stared at her. She didn't know what was going on and it was scaring her. The only thought left to comfort her was that she and Mamoru were meant for each other. That they had to end up together. Al she wanted to know was if he was going to be okay.

Rei sat with her head down. She kept seeing the same image, except every time, she had seen the right before they got together.

_Neo Queen Serenity lay on the snow covered ground. Her face showing pure fear. King Endymion kneeling beside her/ His sword raised high over her body. The look of guilt all over his face. _

"_I'm sorry Usako," he said and then plunged the sword down as she screamed. _

_The sword came back up covered in blood. Mamoru laid his hand down on her belly and then lifted it revealing blood._

Even if Rei still did have some feelings for Mamoru, she didn't want to see them trying to kill each other. "You just need to, all right?" she asked. She was urging them to get married so that they wouldn't go against each other. She knew it had something to do with Queen Beryl, but figured that she couldn't do anything if the two were already together.

Usagi nodded. Right now, she was about to give anything to see what Rei had been seeing, just to understand it. Then again, if she was that worried, did she want to know. It didn't matter, she was going to find out sooner or later whether she liked it or not.

Usagi walked into Mamoru watching TV. "Hello," she said watching him.

"Hey Usako," he said turning his head around. "Come here," he said motioning for her to join him on the couch.

She cautiously walked over and joined him on the couch. She sat down and he put his around her. "Mamo-chan?" she asked.

"Yes?" he asked.

"Would you ever leave me?" she asked him hoping that he wouldn't find the question offensive.

He looked down at her and frowned with confusion. "No," he said. "What brought that up?"

She looked up and pondered on what to tell him. He was going to get the truth, she just didn't know how to put it. "Rei said that we should get married right away."

"How?" he asked.

"I don't know, but there has to be more behind it than what I heard today. She told me that Queen Beryl was planning revenge on me, but she didn't go into details."

Mamoru nervously stared ahead.


	11. Chapter 11

11

"What do you think is going to happen if we don't?" he asked. Usagi just shook her head in defeat.

"I don't know," she said. A single tear fell down her cheek. "I guess I don't know much anything." Mamoru looked over and questioned her. "I can't, I believed that we could pull this off, and look at us now," she said.

"You seem to be forgetting something," he said as he grabbed her shoulders.

"Yeah? What?" she asked.

"We haven't lost anything yet," he said giving her a look of reassurance.

Usagi looked up and weakly smiled. "But what about Rei and her visions?" she asked.

He sighed. There was no way that he could tell her that there was nothing to worry about. He knew how often Rei was right, and this time, she most likely was. Wrapping his comforting arms around Usagi, he gently stroked her hair. "I don't know," he said. "But I do know that right now there is no one that I would leave you for."

Usagi just stared forward. She believed him, she just didn't know if he was going to be okay. All she wanted was some reassurance. Something to let her know that it was all going to turn out all right.

_Neo Queen Serenity slowly walked along the porch of the palace. She was doubled over and her face twisted in pain. She kept gripping on to the fence to help pull herself along, but it seemed to be more like dragging herself now. She then started to fall, but was caught once her knees hit the ground. She turned around to see who the gentle hands belonged to. Once she saw the face, tears swelled in her eyes and she looked away. She almost looked to be ashamed of either herself or the other person. _

Rei stared across the room over at a picture that she had kept from when every one gathered at the beach. She was staring to wonder why her dreams only had Mamoru and Usagi. If she was in trouble, weren't they supposed to be there to help? Where were the others? She was starting to wonder if they had left her.

"Too bad this might all happen on your birthday," she said and then closed her eyes to try and go back to sleep.

Her eyes opened back up as soon as she had a suspicion. Sitting p, she looked out towards the window. "Who's the man that she was supposed to marry?" she asked herself. Rei checked the time and noticed that it was midnight. It might have been late, but it was urgent.

Usagi laid in bed in the comfort of Mamoru's arms. As hard as she tried, she couldn't sleep. The conversation that she had with Rei just kept going through her head. All she wanted to know was if every one was going to be okay. If Mamoru was going to be okay.

The phone began to ring from out in the hall by the door. Being careful not to wake him, she slid out from under his arm and got out of bed.

"Hello?" she asked as she held on to the receiver.

"Hello? Usagi-chan? It's Rei," she said.

"What are you doing? Do you realize what time it is? Some of us are trying to sleep," In her case, the key word was trying.

"Do you think that I would call if it wasn't important?" Rei asked getting annoyed.

"Sorry. What is it?" Usagi asked.

"What was the name of the man that your parents were trying to fix you up with?" she asked.

"His first name was Hideo, but I don't remember his last name," Usagi answered. "Why?" she asked becoming more worried.

Rei sighed. Right now was not the time that she wanted to be explaining everything to Usagi. First she wanted to find out what was really going on. There was no reason to jump to conclusions at this time. Not now when she had the time to investigate it a little. "I just need to know. I think he might have something to do with Queen Beryl and her return."

Usagi could hear a tone of deep concern. "Rei-chan? What's wrong? Really, you can tell me," Usagi said trying to at least get a small explanation from her. She also knew that there was something that brought the thought on. She called late, that meant that this was all very recent within the last couple of minutes.

"The same thing that I was talking about earlier today," Rei answered rather quickly.

"Rei-chan? Did you have a vision about Hideo?" Usagi asked.

"No," she answered.

"Then what have you been having visions about? I know they're about Mamoru and I. Why don't you just tell me?" She begged on the verge of tears.

"Because, I don't feel the need to worry you right now. I know absolutely nothing other than what I see. I couldn't tell you what is actually going on. Nor could I tell you why," she explained.

That struck a nerve. Now Usagi was worried. "Rei-chan? What were the visions?" she asked. "I have a right to know. If it is about something that endangers either my or Mamo-chan's life, I need to know," she said trying to steady her voice and stay calm.

She was right. Rei hated to tell her, but she was right. The last thing that she wanted to do right now was add more stress to her friend's life. "All right. I'll tell you, but you have to promise not to go crazy or act on it until it is known what is actually going on."

Usagi sighed and looked down. "All right, I promise," she said.

"Okay. At first it was one of you and Mamo-chan. You two were just facing each other with swords in your hands, but then you just walked away from each other. You both seemed like you wanted to be with each other, but couldn't," She explained.

Usagi didn't think that was all that bad. That right there could have been anything at all. She closed her eyes and nodded. "Okay," she said.

"The one I just had was of you walking around at the palace. You looked like you were in pain, but then some one grabbed your shoulders. I don't know who it was, but you about ready to cry. Of course, that could have been from being in pain," she said.

That again wasn't so bad. She didn't like the idea of pain, but at least it wasn't anything real bad. "That's not nearly as bad as what I thought I was about to hear," Usagi replied.

"Wait, there's one more. I saved the worst one for last. So brace yourself. All right?" Rei said.

Usagi looked up with concern. Now gripping the cord, she readied herself for what she was about to hear. "Okay," she answered with her voice starting to get shaky.

"You were lying on the ground with Mamo-chan kneeling over you. You looked scared, and he looked angry. He raised a sword up and lowered it. I'm assuming that he stabbed you, but I didn't see where the sword went down. When he pulled it back up, there was blood on it. The next thing I saw was his hand on your belly, and once he lifted his hand, there was blood," she said.

Usagi's mouth fell open as her eyes watered. It felt like the ground had just been removed from beneath her. "Mamo-chan," she softly whimpered as she turned to face the room.


	12. Chapter 12

12

Usagi stood staring towards the bedroom where her future husband lay. It was hard for her to comprehend the fact that he could possibly kill her.

"Usagi-chan? Are you okay?" she asked bring Usagi back from her thoughts.

"Yeah. I'm fine," she said with a distant tone.

"All right, I'll look into Hideo and see what's going on," Rei said.

"Are you sure?" she asked not really believing her friend one the other end of the phone. Right now she wanted to know what was going through her head. It was apparent that she had struck a nerve and scared her, which she knew was going to happen, but didn't want her to do anything yet.

"I'm sure," she doubtfully answered as she hung up the phone.

Rei heard the phone and hung up. She decided to call Ami to see what they should do. She tried, but got no answer.

"Well, I guess there might not be anything that can be done right now," Rei said. In defeat, she went back into her room and stared back at the picture. For some reason, that picture had been catching her eye lately. It had crossed her mind that it might have something to do with what was going on, but how?

Usagi stood in the darkened hallway. All she could do was stare at the door. What was he planning on doing to her? Then again, she knew that it would have something to do with Queen Beryl. "Mamo-chan," she whispered as she twirled the ring that she wore around her finger.

Without a second thought, Usagi got into bed with him. Even after hearing what she had, it was impossible for her to stop loving him. It was also hard for her to believe that it was actually Mamoru himself who was trying to hurt her.

Mamoru stirred and then opened his eyes. "Usako?" asked.

Usagi looked down to him with doubtfulness. "Mamo-chan?" she asked getting his attention. "Would you ever hurt me?"

Mamoru looked to her with utter confusion. "Why? Did I give you the wrong idea or something?" he asked.

"No. I just, I need to know," she said with tears forming in her eyes. She awaited his answer as she tried to figure out whether the tears were out of frustration or betrayal.

Mamoru firmly grabbed her shoulders and looked her in the eyes. "I need you to listen to me. No. I would never hurt you. I'd rather get hurt doing something for you than even think about hurting you," he explained with a deep tone of guilt in his voice. He was thinking back to when he had hurt her. He never wanted to go back there again.

Usagi nodded her head. Without a single word between the two, she collapsed into his chest and cried. This time it was out of fear of losing him. Losing the man that was there for her, the only true man to understand her, and lastly, but certainly not least, the only man who has shown true love to her. Who has shown her what love is all about. What love can do and how it can save people.

"Is there something that I missed?" he asked as he gently rubbed her back.

"I don't know," she said.

Mamoru took kept her in her arms and laid down. He pulled the covers over her and then kissed her on the forehead. "If you figure it out, tell me," he said.

Usagi replied with a small smile. She didn't know if she could. It was too much for her to even think about, let alone explain to some one else.

The next morning, Usagi awakened to the sun shining in through the window. She slowly opened her eyes and realized that Mamoru wasn't with her anymore. "Mamo-chan?" asked. She then turned and saw him with his back turned to her. He was just sitting and staring. Looking to him with confusion, she quickly got out of bed and went over to his side. "What's wrong?" she asked getting worried.

Mamoru looked over at her without any expression. He had obviously been worried or angered by something. She felt bad about it, but the only thought in the back of her head was of him kneeling over her with a sword. He sighed as he looked down. His black, uncombed hair hanging in his face. Putting his arm around her shoulders, he looked up at her. There was a look of seriousness and concern that made her nervous. It was difficult to not think that something was wrong. "I love you Usagi. I just want you to understand that. Anything that I do is for you, even if you don't understand it at the time," he explained. Usagi nodded to let him know that him understood what him know that she understood him.

The phone began to ring. "Here, I'll be right back," she said as she got up.

"Hello?" she asked.

Mamoru sat there in the room. He could hear her talking, although he had no idea what about. All that he knew was that he felt guilty. That was something that he could not tell her and was now beginning to think that she had already known.

"Mamo-chan?" he turned and saw her standing in the doorway. "Hideo had nothing to do with Queen Beryl. Rei and Ami went over to my house and snuck in earlier," she explained.

"I'm sorry," he said.

Usagi just shrugged as she went and sat down on the bed. She just wished she knew what he was sorry about.

**Hey, I know this seems to keep dragging on, but the next chapter will be her eighteenth birthday. Then it should pick up a little. I do hope that you enjoyed this chapter, and as always please tell me what you thought about it. **


	13. Chapter 13

13

Usagi and Mamoru walked down the sidewalk together as it started to snow. They were going out to dinner since the next day was her eighteenth birthday. He knew that he wouldn't get the time he wanted to celebrate alone with her so he decided to the night before.

He lead her into a nice restaurant. The place was elegant and seemed like it would be expensive. It was all right since she was dressed up, she just didn't know if he could afford it. They were led to their table which sat by the window. Once seated, they were handed their menus.

Usagi looked up at Mamoru. His face was glowing from the fire burning before him that came from the lit candle. He had gotten pretty much back to normal since that morning that she had gotten the call from Rei about Hideo, but he had been a little protective over her. She wanted to talk to him about that, but figured that she better gradually lead up to that.

"Isn't this place a bit expensive?" she asked.

Mamoru looked up from his menu and chuckled. "Don't think I can afford it?" he asked.

Usagi rolled her eyes and laughed. That laugh slowly faded to a look of concern. "Can you?" she asked.

"I've saved up some money," he told her. "Besides, like it or not, this is an important birthday for you. Tonight you go to bed Usagi Tsukino, tomorrow you wake up Neo Queen Serenity," he said.

The title itself was a bit ominous to her. As much as she was excited, she was scared. What if she wasn't ready yet? What if everything went wrong? Not to mention the fact that Queen Beryl might be there. Then there were the premonitions that Rei had had. There was just too many things that could go wrong.

"Mamo-chan?" she asked changing her state to completely serious. "Are you okay? I mean, lately you've seemed," she paused to gather how she wanted to word what she had to say. Her blue eyes were glittering in the orange glow. "I guess nervous," she said.

Mamoru looked up at her with surprise. He had been expecting to hear a lot of things, but that was not one of them. "How?' he asked.

Usagi turned and looked out the window as people passed by in the gently falling snow. "Ever since the morning that I found you sitting by the wall instead of in bed. You have been more protective since then," she explained trying to be as careful with his feelings as she possibly could. He just looked down. Usagi sighed and leaned forward. "Is there something that I should know about?" she asked.

Mamoru looked up. Her face was so angelic, so innocent. How could he even consider telling her that he felt something was wrong. As much as hated to tell her, he hated to keep things from her more. This was something important to her, and she needed to know. "Look," he said grabbing her hands from across the table and leaning in. " I don't want to scare you, but I kept having this dream. It was of me, me killing you. I was kneeling over you with a sword," he said sounding like he was on the verge of panicking.

Usagi started to cry as she looked away. She was angry and afraid, yet, she never once let go of his hands. There was no way that they could be torn apart that easily. "I know," she quietly whimpered. "I know" she repeated as she turned back to face the man sitting across from her. "Rei told me. She had the same dream."

"What do you think it means?" Mamoru asked. Usagi simply shook her head. "I don't know," she said. "All I do know is that I can't lose you again. I can't do it."

"I'm not going to let you," he said trying to reassure her. Although, right now was the hardest time to try that. Right now, she was scared and nervous and he was trying to tell her that he will keep his promises to her. "Usagi, listen to me," she did what he told her. "We've been through rough patches before, and I've done a lot of things that I'm not proud of, but we'll make it through this."

Usagi forced a small smile and gripped his hands even tighter. "Okay," she said trying her hardest to actually believe him. She knew that he was going to try, but that didn't always mean that everything would be okay. There was something about to happen and she was beginning to feel that it was out of their control.

That night, they walked back into the empty apartment. It was hard for her to believe that the next day, everything could change. Right now, everything was so calm and peaceful, it was hard for her to imagine having it turn to complete chaos.

Mamoru sat down on the couch and looked over at her as she stood by the coat hanger. "Come here," he said as he motioned for her to take the seat next to him. Usagi bowed her head shyly walked over to him. Looking up and smiling at him, she felt his arm around her shoulders. "I gave you your birthday gift already, now I don't have anything to give you," he said.

Usagi smiled and looked down at her hand. "It's okay. You took me out to dinner and wouldn't let me see the bill. I think that's enough," she said. Slightly laughing, she turned and kissed him on the lips. Mamoru returned the gesture by devilishly grinning and wrapping his arms around her. Usagi turned to face him. Mamoru changed his position so that he would be laying back on the couch and she would be kneeling over him. They started out passionately kissing. Mamoru then went to grab her shirt as she went to un button his. As soon as he had her shirt half way off, the phone rang causing them to both jump and land on the floor.

Usagi sighed as she sat up and pulled her shirt back down over her body. "I'll go get it," she said sounding disappointed.

Mamoru chuckled. "I'll be right here," he called out as she walked away.

Usagi made her way to the phone and picked the receiver up. "Hello?" she asked. Her face dropped as she closed her eyes in regret. "Hello mother," she said with annoyance. As her mother spoke, she turned and looked back at Mamoru. Tears started to swell in her eyes. "Well you won't see me there," Usagi argued and then hung up the phone.

"Usako?" Mamoru asked.

Usagi's muscles tightened. She then walked out into the living room and stood before him. Her face full of angst and guilt. Mamoru saw her fists clenched at her sides and stood up. He walked over and comfortingly grabbed her shoulders. "Usako?" he asked again trying to get something out of her. All he heard was that it was her mother and that she wouldn't be there. He was thinking that it had something to do with that man that they had gotten for her to marry.

Usagi looked up to him with tears of frustration beginning to stream down her cheeks. "It wasn't Hideo, it was my parents," she stated causing him to question her. "It was my parents! Damn it! Those aren't my parents and they haven't been my parents since that night I came here! Mamo-chan! She asked me how I could be Queen if I didn't even stand up to her!" she cried out with anger and resentment. Mamoru stepped back as his eyes widened with realization and shock. "She's been planning this a lot longer then I even thought," she said as she fell to her knees.

Mamoru knelt down before her as she cried into her hands. He rested on one hand as he laid the other on her arm. There was nothing that he could even think of to say at the moment. "You know that you can fight her. I mean, you've done it before," he said trying to be reassuring.

Usagi slowly lifted her head up from her hands and looked to him with despair. "The first time obviously didn't work. Now I'm going to have to put every one through that again because I had to fail the first time," she said. She looked off to the side towards the window and watched the snow for a minute. Turning back to him, she could see the sympathy in his eyes. "Mamo-chan. I've got to go," she announced.

"Well, okay," he said as he started to help her up. Usagi grabbed his hand and pulled him back down.

"No, I have got to go, alone," she explained.

"But Usako," he protested.

She could see the pain in his eyes. The betrayal, guilt, it was all there. Feeling bad, she grabbed his hand. "Don't you see? It's ME! ME that she wants! She also wants you, but I can't let that happen. Not again. And I'm not going to pull every one else through this. Besides, why else do you think you and Rei were having those dream? She wants you and she wants me, but mostly me, and that's all she'll get if she gets anything at all," she said.

This had certainly been a huge step for her. Most times, she would hate to be alone, but this time, it was alone or nothing. There were no other choices and no one was going to change her mind. Usagi turned and saw Luna observing the situation. "Luna, go home and get me my crescent wand. I still have it along with the crystal. I keep it in a shoe box in the bottom of my closet," she said. "I can't risk them finding it," she announced. Luna nodded and then headed out to get it. Usagi turned and watched her leave and then turned all her attention back to the man in front of her. Her expression was now completely serious. "Mamo-chan," she said.

"Yes?" he asked not really wanting to hear what she had to say next out of fear.

"I need you to keep every one here while I take the crown. I can't risk having any one there. I'm also going to go get my parents back. I need you to watch over all of them," she said.

Mamoru hated having her go off on her own like that, but knew that she wouldn't have it any other way. He also knew how important to her it was to keep everyone else out of it. As far as she was concerned, this was an old matter between her and Queen Beryl, and it was going to stay that way. "All right," he said in defeat.

Usagi smiled as she sat up and kissed him. "Thank you," she said and then got up and went into the bedroom.

Mamoru sat there. "Any time," he said wondering if he really did the right thing.

**I know, I know, I said that this one would be about her birthday, but I got another idea while I was writing this and thought that it wouldn't hurt to put it off for one more chapter. I hope you liked it. I would like to thank every one who has reviewed and I would also encourage you to review and tell me what you thought about it. **


	14. Chapter 14

14

Usagi stood before the mirror. Her white satin dress fitting her just perfectly, her hair just so. She looked perfect, but did not in any way feel it. Tears began to fall from her eyes as she ran the brush through her hair. All she could feel was doubt and anxiety. Today was her big day, but she knew what was going to happen. She knew how it was going to get ruined. The room was dim around her making it look as if her dress gave off a slight, soft glow as she stared at her reflection. Closing her eyes, she reached out and gripped onto the crescent wand.

"I have to go this alone," she scolded herself as she remembered what became of last times encounter with Queen Beryl. Her eyes sprang open as she heard a knock at the door. "Come in!" she called out as she looked up at the mirror and dabbed her eyes.

Luna walked in. She was in her human form. Her black curly hair loosely sat on her shoulders and flowed down her back. She was wearing a long purple gown that went down right passed her knees. "How are you doing in here?" she asked with concern as she slowly approached her side.

Usagi looked up with surprise. "Luna?" she asked.

"I'm the one presenting the crown to you. How did you expect me to do it?" she asked.

Usagi looked down and sighed. "Right," she said sounding distant.

Luna looked down to her with sympathy. "You know, this is like your graduation," she said getting Usagi's attention. "You went from being crybaby Usagi to Neo Queen Serenity. You have gathered up the soldiers, learned about your past and future. You saved the world from ending and then saved Princess Galaxia. Usagi, whether you like it or not, you've matured and actually became a leader," Luna said trying to get her to have at least a little faith in herself.

"I don't know," she said softly as she turned and saw herself in the mirror again. Every one was telling her that she was this strong leader, but all she could see was a scared and weak young girl who wasn't ready for any of this.

"If Queen Beryl were to show up now, what would you do?" Luna asked.

Usagi looked over and shrugged. "I would change to sailor moon and take care of her. I would just have to make sure that I do a better job than I did before," she answered.

"What about the others?" Luna asked. She did have a point to this questioning, she just wanted to see if Usagi would catch on to it.

"What do you mean?" she asked. "They wouldn't be here. Remember? I told them to stay home," she explained as she started to brush her hair again.

"See?" Luna asked. "When you first started you had to have others help you. Now you're willing to risk every thing and face your fears so they don't have to face danger," she said. Luna then walked over and stood behind her to watch her reflection.

Usagi slowly looked up and widened her eyes. She realized that Luna was right, she didn't like it, but she was right. "I guess that just means that I should get out there and get this over with so that I can protect every one," she said. Those weren't the words that Luna was waiting to hear, but still nodded.

"Hello?"

They both turned and saw the door open. Mamoru stepped in. He knew that she didn't want him to even show up, but he had to come. "Happy birthday," he said as he closed the door behind him.

Usagi began to show a small smile through the tears. As much as she hated to admit it, she was still the same girl that needed some one with her to get through something. With pure excitement, she got up and ran towards him. Mamoru took her into his arms and tightly hugged her as he lifted her up off the ground. They went in for a brief kiss and then stood back from each other. "Thank you Mamo-chan," she said with genuine happiness.

"Did you really think that I would leave you alone at a time like this?" he asked as he cupped his hand around her cheek.

Usagi closed her eyes and smiled. For a moment, she forgot about her problems. She took her hand and gently laid it on top of his. Then, reality came back. The young blonde squeezed his hand and then lifted it up off her face. "I'm sorry to do this," she explained through tears as she stared up to him with the sadness that he had wished he could get rid of. "But, I have to be alone for this. I can't have you or any of the others here."

Mamoru hung his head with disappointment. There was no use in trying to get the girl to change her mind. He knew why she wanted him gone, but she needed the others there with her. Even if she was strong enough to fight. "All right," he said and then slowly made his way over towards the door. He was about to open it, but paused and turned back towards Usagi. "Right now is one of those times that I would love to see that part of you that is still a child." he said and then walked out of the room. Usagi just sighed and then went back to her dresser and finished getting ready.

Usagi now sat in a throne in the palace. She looked out over a crowd. In the front were the outer senshi. She had expected that since they had not been told not to come. She was surprised to see Minako and Rei right beside them though. As she spotted them, they each gave her a smile of reassurance. Though unsure of herself, she returned the smile. Continuing to look straight out over the crowd, she tried her hardest to keep a look of dignity, something to show that she wasn't scared. It was now her responsibility to take care of every one, and one thing that would not help would be if they were all scared to.

Every one turned and looked back as Luna came down the isle. She carried the crown on top of a purple velvet pillow. It was beautiful, and under most circumstances, she would be more than happy to wear it, but not today. Today it was a sign of darkness. A sign of Queen Beryl's return.

Luna got up to her and stood with a smile on her face. "Princess Serenity, daughter of Queen Serenity. By taking this position, you promise to protect these people against anything that can and or will harm them. You also promise to rule over them with fairness and justice. Along with that you promise to make sure that you do what ever it takes to keep the kingdom safe. Knowing this, do you accept the responsibility of the throne and everything it stands for?" Luna asked.

Usagi looked up to her with a blank expression. In her heart, she doubted that she should even be there, but even though Luna asked, she figured she didn't have a choice. After all, she was the princess, it was her destiny. "I do," Usagi declared. She had much rather been using that during her marriage right now.

Luna then placed the crown on her head and bowed down before her. "Congratulations Neo Queen Serenity," she said. Usagi sighed and then thanked her. She was now the queen. Everything was up to her and there was no turning back now. Not for anything. Every one cheered as she stood up and walked down the isle over to the staircase. Their cheering only made her feel worse. They trusted her. She gave them a promise and they completely believed her. She wasn't quiet sure of she could live up to it.

Usagi, who was now the queen, made her way up to her bedroom and closed the door behind her. All she could do now was to wait for Queen Beryl to come. Laying down on the bed, she thought about what she'll have to do. How she'll have to go it alone.

"Come in," she called out upon hearing a knock at the door. She quickly sat up as the door opened. A smile came to her as she saw Rei and Minako entering the room. "Hey guys," she said.

"Hi Usagi-chan," Minako said trying to sound as cheerful as she could.

"Hello Usagi-chan," Rei said sounding more concerned.

They each walked over to her and sat down beside her on the bed. "Just one question," Usagi said getting them to both look up at her. "Why did you two come?" she asked.

"Well," Minako started. "Mamoru-chan told us what was going on, but nobody wanted you to do this alone so we decided that only half of us should come. That way the other two could still watch your family for you," she explained.

"What about Mamo-chan?" she asked.

"He's fine, he stayed with Ami and Makoto," Rei said. She had heard the worry and concern in her friend's voice and wanted to try to make her feel better. The only thing that would get in the way of that, was that she knew something bad was about to happen, she just didn't know when. If she knew, she would tell her.

"Have you had any more dreams?" Usagi asked. She was hoping that maybe as they got closer to the time when things would go wrong that her visions would become more clear. Rei sadly shook her head. Usagi just looked down. She wanted more than ever to hear that nothing was going to happen, but she herself could feel it. She could feel that there was something just waiting for the right moment. "I've got to go back now," Usagi said.

"What?" Minako asked.

"I've got to go back and almost marry Hideo," Usagi explained.

"But Usagi-chan, what about Mamoru-chan?" Minako asked. She was surprised to even hear her mentioning that she would go back to face that boy.

Usagi looked up at Minako and slightly smiled. She had expected that response from her. "I said almost. I just have to get them to think that I am going to marry him. That way they think I've fallen into the trap and reveal themselves," she explained.

"And once they reveal themselves, you can beat them which would in turn anger Queen Beryl and get her to return so you can finally finish her off," Rei said figuring it out on her own. Usagi nodded in response.

"I need you two to stay here, just in case anything happens. All though, I doubt anything will since I'll be gone. She'll probably wait until I'm back here before she does anything drastic," Usagi said. They both agreed to stay behind as she went to go fight what ever youmas got a hold of her family.

Luna was now back to being a cat as she walked with Usagi to her house, some place that had not been for a long time now. She stopped in front of the house as she looked up and sighed. "I guess this is it Luna," she said. Closing her eyes for a moment, she thought about what she would have to do. She had to convince then that she was willing to marry Hideo with out actually going through with it.

Usagi finally decided to go up and knock on the door. "Hello" Ikuko asked as she opened the door.

"Mother?" Usagi asked as she examined the lady. She knew it wasn't her mom, yet she felt guilty having to do what she was about to do.

Ikuko smiled at her daughter and then looked at the time. "Okay, if we hurry, we can make it to the church in time," she said sounding rushed.

"What?" she asked.

"Just come on. You're about to get married," Ikuko said as she grabbed her daughter's wrist and took her to the car.

On the way over to the church, Usagi started thinking about what had just happened. Why she had reacted the way that she did. They knew. They knew that she knew and now it had turned into some kind of game. She now needed to start outsmarting them. To some how make them think that she still doesn't know. That she's still the same naïve little girl from four years ago. That shouldn't be so hard since she had lied to her parents a lot.

They got to the church and Usagi got dressed into her wedding dress. There was no doubt that she had fun wearing one, but she just wished that the man in the tuxedo waiting for her out there was Mamoru. She now sat alone in a back room of the church as she stared at her reflection. "Here we are again," she said to herself as she started to cry. Again, she looked perfect, but couldn't enjoy it because of the situation that she was in. "Damn it, if it's the last thing I do, she's going to pay for this," Usagi declared as her tears of sadness turned to frustration.

"Usagi-chan!" Makoto exclaimed as she came through the door causing Usagi to jump. "What the hell do you think you're doing!?"

Ami closely followed and rushed in after Makoto. "Usagi-chan! Is it true?" Ami asked.

Usagi sighed as she looked down. "Look, I'm not going to go through with it. I'm hoping that everything will be revealed during the wedding and end it before anything actually happens," she explained.

"What if that doesn't work?" Makoto asked.

Usagi looked up at her and thought for a moment. "I won't get married to him. I refuse. I will simply run out of that church to avoid getting married to him. There is no way that I am walking out of here a wife," she said starting to sound as tense as she felt.

"Don't say I do," Ami said. "Saying I do is your way of saying that are willfully getting married. If you refuse to say I do, then you are stating that you're not getting married on your own will which in turn makes the marriage unofficial," Ami explained.

"Which means that I can walk out of here a single girl," Usagi said thinking out loud. Ami nodded. Usagi then looked back at herself in the mirror and thought for a minute. "Oh God," she gasped and then quickly wheeled around towards her friends. "Mamo-chan!" she yelled and then stood up. "Does Mamo-chan know about this?" she asked.

Ami and Makoto exchanged looks of uncertainty and then focused their attention back at Usagi. "Actually, he's waiting outside," Makoto hesitantly answered.

Usagi closed her eyes for a minute. There was a lot going on right now and it was hard for her to even think. Every muscle in her body was tense, that was good when it came to fighting, but now it was just a nuisance. Her fists were clenched as she tilted her head up towards the ceiling and then opened her eyes. "Okay," she said with her voice shaky.

"He's not mad at you. He knows what you're doing," Ami explained trying to comfort her friend. "Would you like me to go out and talk to him? Make sure that he's here after this is all done and over with?" Ami asked.

Usagi nodded. "Thank you," she said and then hugged her. Usagi then turned back to Makoto and tried to force a small smile. "Would you like to be my maid of honor? Make sure I don't do anything stupid?" she asked.

Makoto softly laughed. "Sure," she said. She felt sorry for Usagi who was now dabbing he eyes. "You know Usagi, she's doing this to you on purpose," she said making Usagi pause and stare at the mirror with realization. "She's trying to wear you down. Don't let her, because if she does, that's like a promised victory to her," she said.

Usagi slowly turned and looked at her. "That makes sense," she said. "Sometimes I wish were as strong as you," she said with a distant look to her eyes.

Makoto smiled. "No you don't. The only reason you're so stressed out is because you know that every one else is in danger. That's what a lot of people like about you, you're caring and it shows," she explained.

Usagi thought about that as she looked off to the side. Her thoughts were interrupted by her mom.

"Come on girls, ceremony's about to start," she called out as she stuck her head in the door.

"Coming," Usagi said without any expression.

Usagi now stood at the front of the church with Hideo at her side. He seemed to be genuinely happy to be there which made her feel bad about what she was going to do. The entire time had been spent wondering when the youmas would strike. When everything would start. It never happened. She was still standing there and the wedding was almost over. But no matter what, she kept in mind what Makoto had told her, don't get too stressed out.

"Now Hideo, do you take Usagi to be your lawful wedded wife? To have and to hold? In sickness and in health? For better or for worse? Until death do you part? Say I do," he said, which brought Usagi back from her thoughts.

"I do," Hideo said smiling at her. It melted her heart to see the way that he was looking at her. How excited he was, but she knew that the only man to ever truly love her, was Mamoru, and the only man she could ever truly lover was Mamoru.

"And do you, Usagi, take Hideo to be your lawful wedded husband? To have and to hold? In sickness and in health? For better or for worse? Until death do you part? Say I do," he said now pointing his attention to her.

"I…" she started and then looked up and saw the expression on Hideo's face. He now looked as if he was about to puke from becoming nervous. "I'm sorry," she said as she shook her head and then ran down the isle to the doors.

Ikuko and Kenji stood up with sorrow and confusion. "Usagi!" Kenji called out. "Get back here!" Ikuko yelled.

Realizing that she wasn't coming back, they both sighed and sat back down in defeat. Hideo stared towards the door as if he had just lost everything in his life. Makoto reached over and grabbed his shoulder. "It's not you, it's just that she's in love with some one else and didn't think it would be fair to marry you," she said with out getting any response from Hideo.

Usgai ran out the doors and saw Ami talking to Mamoru on the side walk. Without paying any attention to Ami, Usagi ran straight into Mamoru's arms and cried into his chest. He embraced her as he stroked her hair. He could feel Usagi starting to go down to her knees, but held her up. "No, please. Just let me sit down," she said.

Mamoru guided her down as he sat down with her. He then pulled her over into his lap. She wanted to talk to him, but didn't know what to tell him. She felt nervous, scared, sad, lonely, helpless, everything. She then looked up to him with her blue eyes. "Sorry about all of this, I don't know what's wrong right now. I got out of getting married to him," she said.

"That's okay, I was expecting it a while ago that you would be like this," he said smiling down at her. He really did feel sorry for her, but he also knew that if he started showing how he felt, it would make things worse for her. "I wish it were better, but happy birthday Usako-chan," he said.

"Some birthday," she said and then smiled at him. "But thank you," she said and then kissed him.

Ikuko and Kenji stood in the doorway of the church as they watched the two kissing in each other's arms. Ikuko just shook her head. "She'll never learn will she?" she asked with a smug little smirk on her face.

**I hope you enjoyed this chapter. I put a lot of work into this one, you can obviously tell that it's a little longer than the others. Please tell me what you think.**


	15. Chapter 15

15

Usagi lay in her bed as the room was flooded with a dim light blue glow that cast upon her. Everything that she thought would happen, didn't. Was she losing it? Were Rei's visions just a trick from Queen Beryl? Maybe even just a misread?

Usagi heavily sighed as she turned over to her side and started to close her eyes. It was going to be a long next couple of weeks and the last thing that she needed was to be tired and unable to think straight. The only thing that kept her from thinking the absolute worst was that she knew that Mamoru was back at home instead of with her in Beryl's reach. Along with Ami and Makoto, he watched her family. Usagi just wanted to be sure that her parents were youmas before she did anything. Also, as much as she wanted to deny it, she wanted to make sure that Shingo was okay.

"I was this were all over with," she softly whispered to herself as she pulled the covers up over her shoulder. She felt like crying and breaking down, but she couldn't. If she started, she was afraid that she couldn't stop. Besides, Mamoru wasn't there. He was the one who could get her through anything, but not this time. This time she wanted him away from her. Memories from when he was stolen by Beryl the first time started to flood her mind as she tightly closed her eyes to keep the tears from falling. "I hope he's okay," she said to herself finally opening her eyes again.

There was a burst of light and a loud crash. Usagi jumped up and looked out the window. She was at loss for words when she saw the walk way to the palace. The foundation was cracked and tilted. Half the pillars were now on their sides while the other were so damaged that they looked like they could be knocked down with a simple little tap.

"That's it!" she yelled as she jumped out of bed and went over to the dresser. She grabbed her wand and sword and rushed out the door. She ran until she got to the presence of Queen Beryl and her company. This time, Queen Beryl seemed to have a completely new army of her own. Jadeite, Malachite, Nephlyte, Zoicite, they were all gone.

Queen Beryl stood with her arms crossed. The smirk on her face indicated that she had been waiting for her, as if she had wanted her to run out there like that. "Well, well, well, our little princess grew up. Now she's the queen huh?" she asked while looking over her enemy.

"You're right, I have grown. I'm not the same crybaby I was," she announced trying to convince herself that that was actually true.

"I see," she said as if reading her to see whether or not she was telling the truth.

Usgai stood up straight and pulled out her sword. "I'm ready now. It's been four years and now I'm ready," she announced.

"And so are we," Rei announced.

Usagi turned around and saw Mars and Venus behind her. She smiled a thank you to them and then turned back towards Queen Beryl.

Queen Beryl just laughed. "I don't want to fight you yet, I still don't have the strength that I need, but, I'm sure that your parents do," she said.

"What?" Usagi asked. She was now worried. Every thought in her head now turned to what could have been going on back at home. Her parents were the last thing that she wanted to hear about right now. She raised her sword in anger. "What did you do to them?!" she yelled out. Her only response was the laughter that came from Queen Beryl. Her friends just exchanged looks of concern. "Tell me what the hell you did with them!" she angrily demanded.

"Oh, trust me, they stopped being your parents long ago. I thought you said you've changed," Queen Beryl remark.

"I have," Usagi argued.

"Then why weren't you wise enough to notice something wrong weeks ago?" she asked. Beryl just then turned to the side and motioned for some one to come to her side. Two people came to her side. Usagi couldn't tell much about them since they were covered in shadow, but she could tell that they each had long hair.

"The others are at the Dark Kingdom," she announced. Usagi just looked up to her with impatience and fear. "The two other brats along with a young boy are being held."

"No," Usagi softly cried as she began to back up. She shook her head in disbelief. She was wrong, Queen Beryl was out for more than just her. Now this was too much, she took her family and her friends. "What did you do with Mamoru?" she asked.

Queen Beryl just pointed off to her left. "He's waiting for you," she announced.

Usagi nervously looked back to Rei and Minako. "Go ahead, we'll stay here and fight the two," Minako said.

"Just be careful," Rei warned.

Usagi nodded and then turned and ran in the direction that she was told to. They all three knew that it could be a trap, but Usagi couldn't take the chance of it really being him. She desperately wanted to know what had happened and would risk everything to go help Mamoru.

Sailor Mars and Sailor Venus stayed behind and were ready to fight what ever they had coming to them. They felt that there was no reason for them to even get hurt now. They had been training and were able to take anything now.

"You two really think that you are good enough to take these two?" Queen Beryl asked pointing to the two next to her.

They both stayed quiet. Neither of them wanted an entire conversation, they just wanted to get the fight over with.

"Okay girls, go introduce yourselves," she commanded.

The two girls walked towards them. Soon enough, both their eyes widened with shock.

"What? How the," Rei started.

"Oh God," Minako said as they both stared at their opponents.

Usagi kept running until she got to Mamoru. She then stopped as she saw him before her.

The Neo Queen Serenity stood there as she watched him. "Mamo-chan?" she asked.

Mamoru, now Endymion, stood there and shook his head. He had a sword in his hand ready to fight. "I'm sorry, but we are now sworn enemies, what ever happened, happened. It doesn't mean anything anymore," he announced.

It was dark and gloomy. The breeze swept her long her off the ground. She looked a head with despair and sadness. Opposite of her stood Endymion with the same look on his face. They kept their distance from each other but, still had some kind of longing for each other. She could easily tell that he still had some feelings for her. The sword that she held in her hand now fell to the ground as tears started to fall from her eyes. Endymion then held his up and turned to walk away from her. As he walked away, he looked back at her. Trying to gather herself, Serenity reached down and picked her sword back up. She waited for him to be out of her sight and then turned to walk away.


	16. Chapter 16

16

Usagi started to make her way back towards the palace. Walking slowly, she tried to think about what to do next. It seemed to her that Queen Beryl had already won. She had tow of her friends, her family and now she had her fiancée fighting for her. Her lips quivered as she lowered her head. The warm tear flowed down her cheeks.

"_You coward!" Rei yelled as she slapped her across the face. _

Usagi fell to her knees. "Maybe that is all that I am," she said. As she buried her face in her hands. Stayed there on her knees as she cried out her frustration and loneliness.

Rei and Minako stood in shock as they tried to figure what had just happened. Queen Beryl had just left with her two helpers. She explained to them that they should get ready.

"That can't be. It's impossible," Rei said.

"Where's Ami when you need her?" Minako asked.

"That doesn't matter. We saw what they can do. Having her explain to us what they are won't make a difference," Rei said.

Minako looked down and sighed. "It would still be nice to have them here," she said.

Rei looked over. "I would change the subject if I were you," Rei warned as she looked over Minako's shoulder. Minako turned around and saw Usagi slowly making her way towards them. They both gasped at the sight. The queen looked as if she had just been horribly defeated. Her face was stained from the recent tears and her hair carelessly hung in her face. It looked as if she had given up.

"Usagi?" Minako asked.

Usagi looked up, her face was cold and distant. Even though her face didn't show it, she was happy that they were still there. At least she still had them. "She wasn't lying," she said with tears beginning to return. There was a feeling of defeat that she could not get rid of. She looked off towards the side and shook her head. Letting out a laugh of irony, she looked down. "I thought I was doing the right thing, I really did," she said. She then looked up. "All I wanted was for her to come after me. I know that's what she wants the most, but I guess I was stupid enough to believe that no one else would be in danger. I leave them and she takes them," she said.

Minako and Rei just stood there for a second. Neither of them knew what to tell her. She had been trying to protect the others. It wasn't like she just forgot about them or just got too scared to do anything. "You thought you were doing the right thing, and to be honest, I think she would have found a way to get to you no matter what," Minako said trying to help.

Usagi looked over at her. She knew what she was trying to do, but it wasn't helping. She knew it was all her fault, all of it was. "No, it is my fault," she said and then look towards the palace. "Maybe I'm just not ready to be the queen. I obviously can't make the right decisions. And the wrong decisions always come back to hurt those around me," she said starting to cry.

Rei bit her lip. She knew how to get Usagi to do what she needed, but hated it. "Usagi!" she snapped getting her to quickly look up at her. "You're the queen now whether you like it or not! You're right! This will be hard, but no one said that any of this was going to be easy! Now tears won't solve anything! If you want you're family back I suggest that you stop your crying and figure out a way to do that!" she yelled.

Usagi flinched. It hurt Rei to see the way that she was reacting to it, but that was the only way that she knew how to get through to her. Usagi just stared up at her. The tears were still rimming her blue eyes. "You're right," she said as she started walking towards the entrance of the palace. "I'm going to g o see if Luna's still here and on my side," she said and then started walking towards the entrance of the palace.

Minako watched her leave and then turned to Rei. "How could you?" she asked with disbelief.

"How else was I going to get her motivated to fight?" Rei asked.

Usagi slowly walked into her room. There was a dim light that showed through the window. "Luna?" she asked.

The black cat jumped down from the bed and walked over to her. "Yes my queen?" she asked.

"That's not funny," Usagi remarked and then sat down at the small table. There was a brief silence as she looked down and thought through what she was going to say. "Luna, I think I should go to the dark kingdom tonight," she said.

Luna looked at her in surprise. "Why?" she asked.

"My friends, my family, they're stuck there and I think that I should go and get them back," Usagi said.

Luna looked up at her. "You know how dangerous that is? You could end up losing Rei and Minako to," she warned.

Usagi looked up. "No, they're not coming," she said and then quickly looked over at Luna. "And you're not going to tell any one that I am leaving," she warned.

"You'll get yourself killed," Luna said.

"So? My mother died to set every one free didn't she?" she asked. Usagi knew how dangerous it was, but she had to keep in mind that she was responsible for every one's life now. It was all on her shoulders and she was not about to risk other's lives for her own protection.

Luna just looked down in defeat. She was right, her mother had died so that every one could be sent to another life and be happy. That was all she wanted and she gave her life for it. She couldn't tell her mom not and now she couldn't tell Usagi not to.

"You promise you won't tell?" she asked sounding desperate.

Luna nodded. She hated the idea, but if that was what she wanted, she had to let her. "I just don't know if I'll be okay with it," she said. "Can I at least come? In like a purse or something?" she asked.

Usagi just stared at her. "I mean, I don't see why she would want a cat," Luna tried to explain.

"No, you stay here and look after things. You'll be the only one who knows where I am. That way if anything happens here you can come and get me," she said. Luna just nodded in agreement.


	17. Chapter 17

17

_Usagi was only about five years old. Even at that age, she was considered royalty. She happily cheered as she sat at the front of the main ballroom. Wearing her small tiara, she tried her hardest to sit up straight and look serious. "Look mommy! Just like you! Just like you!" the young girl squealed. _

_Queen Serenity turned and laughed. She had always loved to see the way that her daughter would act. She walked over and took her crown off. "Here, try this one," she said placing the crown onto her daughter's head. _

_Usagi clapped her hands as she laughed with joy. Then once the crown was on, it slipped down in front of her eyes. "Huh?" she asked as she took her small hands and felt the front of her face. _

_Queen Serenity laughed and took the crown back, revealing the confused look on the little girl in front of her. _

_Suddenly, Usagi looked up and saw tears starting to form in her mother's eyes. "Mommy? Sad?" she asked. _

"_No, of course not," she said as she picked the small child up. _

Usagi woke up. She had always had small dreams about her former life as the princess, but she had never known what they had meant, and this was the first one that she had had in a long while. Curious, she looked around the room. Spotting Luna, she stopped and then began to call out for her. "Luna! Luna, could you help me out with some thing," she said.

Luna woke up and looked over at her. She had heard what she had said earlier and decided that it had to be something urgent. She was actually happy to see that she had not left yet. "What is it?" Luna asked as she jumped up on the bed and joined her.

Usagi sighed, she didn't quiet know what to ask or how to ask it. "Luna, did something happen here when I was really young?" she asked.

Luna just looked up at her. "Like what?" she asked.

That was what told Usagi that she knew everything. "Something that would have upset my mother. Something bad," Usagi said.

Luna looked down and then looked back up and saw her eager face. She knew that Usagi wanted to know, she just didn't want to be the one to tell her.

"Well?" Usagi asked trying to urge her. She was anxious and felt that for some reason, that it might be important. That it might actually some how help her with something now.

"I know that you don't remember, but you were very young when you're father left the kingdom," she started.

_Usagi was about five years old, as she sat around the corner of her parent's bedroom. She knew something was wrong, just didn't know what. She peeked in and saw Queen Serenity crying as her husband stood before her. _

"_How could you?" her mom asked staring him straight in the eyes. _

"_I did what I wanted for once. All you do is what the people want! You don't even know half of them, yet you'd do anything for them. Queen Beryl thinks about herself. She knows what happiness and is willing to let me feel the same way. Unlike you who just wants to give everything up for strangers. I mean, I guess I don't mind so much if you do that, but don't drag me down with you," he said. _

"_What are you trying to do to me? First you sacrifice my daughter and then tell me that you're leaving me for my enemy?" she asked. _

"He then left her and of course, ten years later, Queen Beryl made her attack," Luna said.

Usagi just blankly stared at her. There were so many parts of that story that had confused her. "Sacrifice my daughter? I'm still here," Usagi said.

"Well, you weren't the first born. See, your father and Queen Beryl go back a long ways. The first Princess Serenity was killed when she was about ten, you were born a few years later," Luna said.

Usagi looked off to the side. This was all a bit much for one day, but she was the one that had asked. She had never thought that she had ever had a big sister. It was all very confusing. She looked down and folded her hands. There was so much that she didn't know, and now she was trying to fight it. For all she knew, she could be fighting her own father. "If he was like that, then why did my mother marry him?" Usagi asked.

Luna could easily tell that she was still some what shocked. Going against her instincts, she decided to answer her question. "Quite honestly, she was forced to. She really loved this other man, I barely even remember what his name was, but she knew that it would only cause destruction if she had gotten married to him," Luna explained.

"But there was destruction from my father. How did marrying him make things better?" Usagi asked.

"I don't know," Luna said.

Usagi sat there and stared off into the distance. It was all very hard for her to understand. The more she thought about it, the less sense it made to her. Then, something struck her. "Luna? Am I being selfish for wanting to be with Mamoru?" she asked.

Luna looked up. She could tell by the look on her face that she was completely serious about what she had just asked. "No," Luna answered. "You want true love, and according to mother's story, true love can run a kingdom much better than a love that was set up," she explained hoping that it would help her.

"I guess that makes sense," she said and then got out of bed.

"What are you doing?" Luna asked.

"I'm going out, and I want to be alone," she said.

Luna sat there and sighed as she watched her close the door behind her. She knew that she was going to do something stupid, but now she couldn't stop her.

Usagi stood in the artic, she wasn't quiet sure exactly where she was, but she knew where she was going. She had waited until every one was a sleep back at the palace before she left, she didn't want to take the chance of having some one following her and getting hurt. Especially after what had happened with her family. There was no reason that any of that should have happened, but she let it happen and now she had to go back and fix things.

She was still dressed in her gown. It was cold, but she wanted to stick out to Queen Beryl, she might get captured, but she would definitely get to the kingdom a lot quicker.

She was scared, and cold, and tired, but now this was all more than just ruining her birthday, more than taking her future husband, this was about the destroyed lives around her. Queen Serenity, her sister, her present family, her friends.

Usagi sighed as she got to what she thought might be the kingdom. It was a small cave out in the middle of no where. She figured that there was probably something underground or that it was just a portal or something. She was about to enter it, but she heard a scream that made her stop. Turning to look, she saw Mamoru jump down. She was pushed down to the ground. In, shock, she just stared up at him as he kneeled over her. It was hard to believe that that was the same guy who had just helped her through everything, then again, it wasn't. This was something that Queen Beryl had put together. He raised his sword above her. "Mamo-chan?" she asked as tears formed in her eyes. She wanted to react, but couldn't. She was still in shock. With both hands tightly gripping the handle, he quickly lunged the sword down causing Usagi to scream.


	18. Chapter 18

18

Usagi lay there in shock as Mamoru threw down his sword. She winced as her eyes closed shut. There was no feeling. She was expecting a sharp pain, but got nothing, not even a small feeling of discomfort. It was starting to make her think that she had died.

"You can open your eyes now, just as long as you act like you're in pain," Mamoru said.

Usagi opened her eyes and carefully propped herself up on her elbows and looked down over her belly. There was nothing there. The sword was sticking in the ground next to her.

"I had to look like I was attacking you, Queen Beryl is watching from behind me," he said.

"What?" Usagi asked as she quickly turned to face him.

"Look a little more painful and angry and then I'll answer," he said. Usagi did her best and then asked again. "I'll explain to you later, that is, if you let me meet you at the palace tonight," he said.

Usagi looked up at him for a minute. It was all very confusing, he was now the enemy, but had decided to spare her and then wants to meet her at her place. How was she supposed to react to that? "Okay, I'll meet you out on the porch at seven or eight, when ever you can get there," she said.

Mamoru smiled at her. "Okay, now, I need you to go back for now. After I meet with you, I'll help you out and then we can fight her, and I promise you, every one's alright, so far. Your family is confused and Ami and Makoto are fine to," he said.

Usagi nodded. "Thank you," she said.

"Alright, you need to look in pain now," he said.

"Alright," she answered sounding unsure of herself.

Usagi laid back, but kept her eyes on the sword. Mamoru slipped his glove off and then slit his hand on the blade as he lifted the sword as drew it across the dress so that it would leave a rip and then rested his hand on her belly. "Sorry about the dress, I need this to look convincing. You can leave once I disappear," he said.

"See you tonight," Mamoru said and then got up and left. Usagi stayed there and watched him with confusion.

Mamoru returned to the dark kingdom and bowed down to Queen Beryl. "I think you find the results satisfying my Queen," he said.

Beryl smirked down at him. "Yes, I saw what you did. I hope you know that I am keeping a constant eye on you," she said.

"Your distrust pains me," he said.

"Yes, but last time I trusted you, you betrayed me," she said.

Mamoru looked up and sighed. "Yes my queen, I remember very well," he said in defeat.

Usagi stood out on the porch. There was nothing that she could do until she knew where Mamoru stood. She needed to knew whether he was out to help her or to hurt her. She figured that she could tell what was going on after her meeting.

"Queen?" Minako asked as she walked out and joined her. Usagi turned around and gave her a quick smile before turning back to face the pond out front.

"Hello Mina," Usagi said as she continued to stare.

"You sure that you want to go through with this?" she asked.

Usagi turned and looked at her. "I have to. I have to know what's going on. Besides, as crazy and insane as it sounds, there's this never ending trust that I have for Mamoru. It's something that I can never give up," Usagi said.

"I wish I had something like that," she said.

"Not if it might be the thing to get this kingdom ruined," she said. Usagi then looked down and sighed. "Think this is a mistake?" she asked and then looked to Mina who shrugged.

"I don't think so. I mean, you want to know who your friends and enemies are, especially when you'll start fighting soon," Mina said.

"Hello."

They both quickly turned and saw Mamoru standing on the ledge. "Usako, Mina," he said.

"At least you remembered our names this time," Mina said.

Mamoru climbed down and walked towards the two. "Look, I remember everything, and I'll tell you what happened," he said.

"Okay," Usagi said.

"What happened was, Queen Beryl came to earth. She was looking for you but found that your family and Ami and Mikoto were alone without you. I figured that I should pretend to give in to her. That way, she wouldn't try to brainwash me, and then I could watch over them. I thought that you would want that," he said.

Usagi looked over at Minako. She didn't even know if she could trust herself at making this decision. "Mina?" she asked.

Mina just sighed. This was no place for her to step in. This was Usagi's boyfriend and her kingdom. "I don't know. What do you think? I mean, you've lived with him," Mina said.

Usagi looked Mamoru straight in the eyes. Everything depended on this. If she was right, everything was okay, if she was wrong, everything was destroyed. There was a lot of pressure on her.

"Make up your mind sweet heart!"

Usagi quickly turned as Mamoru stared up in shock.

"Beryl," she softly gasped.

**I know it's short, but I promise that the next one will be much longer. Besides, I bet you can guess what the next chapter is going to be. **


	19. Chapter 19

19

Usagi looked up. This was the moment that she was waiting for. The anger in her eyes was enough to show her thoughts. "I trust him," she sternly announced.

"What was that?" Beryl asked.

"I trust him!" she yelled out. There were tears starting to gather in her eyes, but she wasn't about to let Queen Beryl see that. As she clenched her fists, she slowly turned back to him. "I can, right?" she asked. Her gaze was soft and innocent, a look that broke his heart. He nodded to her as he smiled reassuringly. She returned the nod and then faced Beryl. She picked her sword up.

"Hold on there, I have an army remember? You must first beat them. I'll be fair. I'll only send one for each, that way everything can be watched," she said. Beryl then stretched her hand out to the side. Two girls that look exactly like Rei and Minako joined her at her side. "These are my soldiers. These girls can do the same thing that yours can. Clever huh?" she asked.

Usagi just stared in disbelief at the sight before her. It was hard for her to even understand how that could occur. The most that she could do at the moment was to matter out a small, "How?"

"Do you seriously think that I am about to tell you?" Queen Beryl asked.

Rei came running out to see what was going on and found Queen Beryl standing there with the two look a likes that they had already fought before. Before she could join every one, the girl standing beside Queen Beryl put her hands together and created a fire ball and threw it at her.

"Rei!" both Mina and Usagi yelled as they turned and ran to her. Mamoru looked down with concern and then went to join them.

"I'm okay. Really," Rei weakly assured.

Usagi just stared with sorrow at her injured friend. This was it for her. She had known that something was going to happen, but now this was all going too far for her. Every one had been hurt or injured but her and she was tired of it. She changed her attention over to Mina. "You stay here with Rei, I'll go take care of Beryl," she said.

"But Usagi, my job is to protect the queen and that is what I am going to do," Mina argued.

"I'm the queen and I NEED you to stay here," she ordered.

Mina looked over at Rei who was no sitting up. "Usagi," Rei tried to reason with her. "It may be your destiny to be queen, but it is OUR destiny to protect you. You do have the right to give us orders now, but can't just dismiss what we were meant to do," Rei explained.

Usagi sighed as she looked down and thought about what she had just said. There was nothing to say to that. She was right, it was their duty, but she couldn't live with herself if anything were to happen to them. "It's not an order, but could you two please, stay out of it until I say that I need you? I already have two of my friends gone because I did something stupid, I don't need four gone because of it," she said.

They both exchanged looks and thought it through. "Only if you promise that we can stay right here and that you'll call out if you need us. No faking anything," Rei said.

"We need you to. Besides, if the queen dies then every one's doomed," Mina said.

"Promise," Usagi said and then stood up. She walked over and stood before Queen Beryl with her sword in her hand and anger in her eyes.

"Where are your two little friends?" she asked.

"I'm alone," she announced.

"Very well, " she said and then pulled out her own sword. Usagi held up her own sword in defense. "Where's that little wand that you used?" she asked. "This was given to me," she said.

Beryl smirked and then swiped the sword across Usagi's chest from shoulder to shoulder. "And so was that," she said as Usagi closed her eyes to keep from yelling out or crying. Mamoru looked up with regret and started to get up. As hard as it was for any of them, Rei put her hand on his shoulder to keep him down.

Usagi lifted her sword and went for Beryl's stomach but was blocked. She tried multiple times but kept getting blocked and blocked a few from Queen Beryl. Each time that would block she would move back. She kept moving back to the point where she was back against the corner of the fence. Beryl smugly smirked and then gave her final try. Usagi tried to block, but wasn't quick enough, the sword pierced through her side and made her fall down to her knees.

"I guess maybe there was nothing to have prepared for after all," she said. Usagi sat there for a minute as she listened to the laugh and ridicule her. All she could think about was the story that Luna had told her about her dad and how he had went to her side. And how her family and friends were all sitting and waiting to be freed. She was the one that could set every one free. With all her strength, she used her own sword to help her stand up and then gripped on the one that was stuck in her and pulled it out. "You may have gotten me down for a minute, and I may not be the strongest one around, but I will not be taken by you," she said and then forced the blade into Beryl's stomach.

Beryl screamed and then started to back up. Usagi, getting weak, forced herself over to her and then picked up her sword. "That was for every one that you have over at your kingdom," she said and then held the sword up over her head having it ready to strike her. "And this is for my parents whose lives were ruined by you," she said and then stuck the sword into her chest causing her to fall back onto her elbows. "Maybe that'll teach you to come back after you've been defeated," she said.

"Don't you ever think that I'll give up that easily," she said and then rolled over to her side and lifted herself up.

Usagi just watched as she got to her feet. "What are you going to fight with? You're obviously weak and now your weapons are jammed in you. If you pull them out you'll bleed to death," Usagi said.

Beryl looked up. There was defeat in her eyes, but she was more stubborn than that. "The worst thing that can happen would be for me to go down and let you live. It may cost me my life, but as long as you go down with me, I can die happy," she said. Beryl gripped on the sword in her stomach and darted for the queen in front of her.

Usagi slowly stepped back and watched as the sword slid past her side and hit the ground. Since Beryl fell with the sword. She lay on the ground beside Usagi. She was now nothing more than just a lifeless body as the blood formed a small puddle. Usagi watched as her body disappeared and then fell to the ground. Mamoru saw her and then ran towards her and allowed her to lay in his arms.

"I did it," she weakly announced while she rested her head on his shoulder.

"Have you already forgotten about us?"

They both looked up at the two look a likes. "There's nothing left for you to fight for, your queen is dead," Mamoru said.

"That doesn't mean that we won't come back," they announced. Once that was said, they both left. After they were gone, Mina and Rei rushed over to see how Usagi was.

"Don't worry about me," Usagi said as she smiled at them, "I'm just happy that you two kept your promise and didn't come out here," she said.

"We were about to when you were cornered," Minako said.

Usagi sighed as she began to stare off into the distance. "Now we just have to go back and get everyone," she said deep in thought.

"Maybe we should go by ourselves. There's nothing for us to worry about now, and you need your rest," Rei said.

Usagi sighed and then attempted to stand up. Once she struggled to her feet, Mamoru stood up and helped her to remain standing with the little strength she had left in her. "No, this is my fault, so I should go and help, it's the least that I can do," she said.

"The least you can do!? You just won this kingdom! You saved everyone from being under her rule! Not only that but you kept others from getting seriously hurt!" Mina said. "Now you're hurt and tired and you are in no condition to be traveling," she said.

Usagi just looked off towards the side. This was more than just a simple desire to go, deep down she felt that she needed to go. That she needed to be there in person to free them and apologize. To tell them that if it weren't for her own stupidity that they wouldn't have been in there in the first place.

"You have to stay here. We'll bring them directly to you once we get back, I promise," Rei said. Even when Usagi became queen, she was still getting ordered around by Rei. It was evident that the two were set on going by themselves. Usagi found their concern touching, but still wanted to protect them and keep every one in her sight.

"Come on, you know that everything will be alright," Mina said.

Usagi looked up and sighed. "Alright, just be careful. I know there's nothing to be afraid of now, but that doesn't mean that things can't go wrong. I mean, one of you could fall or get sick or lost or something," she started to explain.

"Trust me, that has more of a chance of happening with you beside us," Rei said.

Usagi weakly smiled. "Now is that any way to talk to your queen?" she asked.

"I'm just saying that we'll be okay," Rei said.

Usagi nodded and then laid her head back down on his shoulder. Rei and Mina smiled down at her and then went off to go get the others.

Usagi stayed there in Mamoru's arms. It was the one comforting place that she had longed to be for so long. He smiled down at her and stroked her hair. "We need to get you to your bed and get those wounds taken care of," he said.

"Please, I don't want to go anywhere right now," she said.

Mamoru slightly began to laugh. "But a minute ago you were willing to go and get every one," he said.

"I know, but I also felt it my duty, this isn't," she argued.

"Alright then," he said. Mamoru stood up and lifted her in his arms. "I know you can't possibly have the strength to make it inside let alone your room," he said. With that, Usagi smiled as he carried her inside the palace.


	20. Chapter 20

20

Usagi laid in bed. The previous fight had left her sore and tired. Mamoru cracked the door open and peeked in on her. He had been very concerned about the entire time since he had come back to the kingdom. She kept thinking about the third vision that Rei had talked about, the one where she was hurt and some one grabbed her shoulders. She was starting to wonder if maybe that had already happened, but it was different from what she had seen. It was basically the same situation, so why not? Her thoughts were interrupted when Mamoru walked over and sat down by her.

"How's my little Usako doing?" he asked.

Usagi smiled up at him. He was being very gentle and caring and she loved every minute of it. "I'm okay," she said. She started to try and lift herself up, but let out a small moan.

"Careful there," he said as he grabbed her shoulders and helped her up. Once she was sitting up, she snuggled up to him and he put his arm around her. That was what she had in mind for her perfect future, in his arms with the kingdom out of harm. It was perfect now. Actually, she was still awaiting the return of every one that Beryl had captured. As soon as they got back, then everything would be perfect.

There was a knock at the door. "Come in!" Mamoru called out.

The door opened and Mina and Rei entered the room. "We kept our promise," Rei said.

After that was said, every one entered. Ami, Makoto, Ikuko, Kenji, and Shingo all walked in and stood before the bed. Ami and Makoto looked tired, but other then that they looked like they were alright. It was her family that brought a smile to her face. They were in awe as they looked around. They had never expected their crybaby Usagi to ever amount to anything like that.

"Your friends Mina and Rei told us about what you did," Kenji said with concern in his eyes.

Usagi smiled. "I had to fight her," she said.

"You don't get it, they told us everything. About how you started out as the princess and sailor moon and then fought for the first time and how you worked your way up to saving the entire world from ending," Ikuko said with tears starting to form in her eyes. "My daughter is Sailor Moon and it takes me the longest to figure out."  

"I think it's pretty cool," Shingo said.

"I knew you would," Usagi said.

"But one question, if you can do all of that, then why weren't you ever able to get higher then a C in school?" he asked.

"Careful shorty, I'm the queen now, keep that in mind," she said. Usagi then sighed, "And I guess that's why I'm about to ask you if you want to stay here and be one of the guardians."

Luna looked over at her. "You can't do that! He's all human! No powers or anything!" she said.

Usagi looked over and saw the anxious young boy and then turned to Luna. "If you can train me, you can train anyone," she said.

"I believe that," Rei muttered.

"Hey, you're not the one who saved every one are you?" Usagi asked.

Rei rolled her eyes and then smiled at her.

"Ami? Mako? I haven't heard from you two, are you okay?" Usagi asked.

"We're okay," Ami happily announced to her friend.

"You didn't seriously think that witch could hurt us did you?" Makoto asked.

"I think she was just worried about every one," Mamoru said.

"And that's coming from the one that she was constantly talking about the whole time," Makoto said.

"Really?" Mamoru asked as he looked over at her.

"Yes," she said putting her arms around him.

"I got to admit, I was a little worried about you to," he said and then kissed her on the forehead. She lifted her head and then leaned in and kissed him on the lips.

Six months later...

Usagi and Mamoru stood in front of the church. She was a wedding dress as they held hands.

"Do you, Usagi Tsukino take Mamoru Chiba to be your lawful wedded husband?" he asked.

"I do," Usagi said.

"And do you, Mamoru Chiba, take Usagi Tsukino to be your lawful wedded wife?' he asked.

"I do," he said.

"You may now kiss the bride," he announced.

Mamoru and Usagi then turned to face each other. Mamoru grabbed her by the shoulders and pulled her into a kiss. The love that they had both longed for was now right there in each other's arms. There was nothing to keep them apart now. At least, that's what they hope for.

**Well, there it is, the end. I hope you enjoyed it and I would love to hear what you thought about it. **


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